Music Man Label Compilations

"Aktion Mekanik" (Compilation Album, 2002)

Music Man Records

For those who miss the days when electronic music meant stripped bare structures, expressive vocals, valve-driven synthesizers and agendas, this Belgian compilation will give you a strong shot of the good stuff to jerk your body into action once more. Selected by DJ Terence Fixmer (who also adds his retro-styled Aktion Mekanik Theme as a bonus track).

Genre defining artists like Nitzer Ebb, The Normal, DAF, Skinny Puppy, Front 242 and Fad Gadget are all featured as are some (to me at least) unfamiliar names like Crash Course In Science, No More, The Invisible Limit and Snowy Red. But all share that minimalist territory that even today still excites with its almost naked simplicity and hypnotic beats and rhythms.

Thankfully, Fixmer has been careful in his selection of which tracks to include from the big names so that even those well versed in them should enjoy the less-than-obvious choices. When peppered between lesser-known works, this makes for an old skool journey guaranteed to have you hankering for the days before computers resulted in lazy production tricks and bland polish. 7/10

Rob Dyer