The Future Sound of London – Lifeforms

Simply put, one of the most influential electronic ambient albums of the 90′s. And I say ‘ambient’ because despite the minimal techno beats used, if you listen to it past the beats you really discover the mellody. I played this for hours and hours and still love it when I insert it on the CDplayer drawer… just switch off the lights and turn on the lavalamp and trip.

“Lifeforms, a double-disc effort that ranks as one of the best experimental techno releases of the ’90s. If not as immediately memorable on a song per song basis as, say, Aphex Twin‘s Selected Ambient Works collections, as an overall piece, Lifeforms makes for an inventive, fascinating aural experience, as rich and detailed as the Orb‘s best work. Where FSOL differs from that band in particular is the comparative lack of overt humor and less immediate desire to make people groove — this is something to listen to rather than necessarily dance to. In comparison to Accelerator, this is an extremely subtle listen, with rhythms generally buried in the mix, serving the melodies rather than vice versa. In comparison to the upfront breaks and steady house beats just two years previous, here they’re stuttered, echoed, often approaching dub in pace and impact.”

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