Aspen Album Elephant Electronic 8/98 [ELECD02] With just their second release, New Zealand's Elephant Electronic label show they're up to the challenge laid down by the likes of Obscure and Nurture, two other crews from the area's bustling electronic music scene. Aspen's "Album" is the work of one Bevan Smith, who has been playing out live and helping shape the city of Wellington's electronic music future since 1993. The years in the studio and onstage have opened avenues of expression beyond the barrage of four/four beats for Smith. Yes, there are the occasional gritty 606 + 303 + me cuts, a couple of hazy techno floorworkers, and a bump and a shuffle here and there. But, amid these 20 tracks, you'll also find spare percussive freqs and emotive strings, rethinking of the drum n bass framework, and much for the headphone listeners. Highly recommended and well worth the search. --Andrew Duke Back to album reviews index