Neil Landstrumm Pro Audio Tresor 10/98 [Tresor 103] Neil Landstrumm follows up last year's critically and commercially applauded "Bedrooms And Cities" album with "Pro Audio", his third full length for Berlin's reputable Tresor clan. Landstrumm isn't hiding behind obscure song titles and "Pro Audio" states his modus operandi quite clearly--this release is all about the manipulation of sound via computer. Using two Apple Macintoshes, Landstrumm creates, twists, degrades, and processes his material in a way unlike other techno and electronic music producers. Sure, he's got the standard Roland gear (808, 909, and more) and a bevy of studio equipment at his disposal, but the SFX and plug ins through which these run and the way they're chopped and juggled make the difference. Based in Brooklyn, New York since August '97 after moving from Edinburgh, Scotland, Landstrumm has soaked up the inner city flavors of his surroundings and paired these with his beloved bleeps from back home. What we get is rugged and rough at times for the dancefloor, funky and at a slower pace for when it's just you and your CD going one on one. Landstrumm knows 8 tracks of bangin' four on the floor isn't going to make much of an album-hopefully more producers will realize this-and flips between moody, bass throbbers ("Energy Flesh"--an ode to early Joey Beltram perhaps?-and "Bell-Huey….[Blade$ mix]"), old school Sheffield meets nu skool Crooklyn ("The Sentinel"), disc jockey heatseekers ("Vectrex"), weird aquabatics ("Down On The A"), and the blip hop of "Hardcore Gamer 3". In short: a potpourri of percussive pleasures, prodded and pasted and perfectly planned. CD aficionados get four bonus tracks--"Hotline Meetings", "Raw Media", "Last In The Series", and "The Digital Underground" are short, aptly named audioworks created with the Mac's Super Collider setup. And for even more Landstrumm, don't forget to check for the "Pro Audio" EP (4 tracks not on the sametitled album) on his Scandinavia imprint. --Andrew Duke More Landstrumm: Check out an interview with Neil Landstrumm here. Back to album reviews index