Gary Beck: Bring a Friend Label: Soma Records

A relative newcomer to techno, Gary Beck of Glasgow Scotland has released a tour-de-force techno album, the 100th off the legendary Soma label. Gary channels the mighty techno masters but adds fresh production sensibilities to create a new sound aesthetic. His album incorporates different styles & tempos from downtempo/ambient & breakbeat to full-on massive techno. The strongest tracks range from the epic "Algoreal" (#2), the funky "Before the Crash" (#4), the murderous "Hopkin" (#7), and the lively "Operation" (#10). Feel free to try them all do pay attention to these four tracks (2,4,7,10).

1. Atmospheric synths in multiple layers, hard-driving beat
2. Epic techno with epic buildups - earbuds don't do this justice, only a massive sound system will do.
3. Acid warbling over theatrical synth drama. Heavy rolling bass beats.
4. Funky tech-house! Chunky beats, a catchy little loop, quite groovy
5. Grinding drones, mechanical effects, crashes, zips, swirls - all bring the noise
6. Slower track featuring shimmering synths, cymbals, claps, snares - good stuff
7. Relentless pounding techno. Thumping beats, deep rumbling bass, snappy snares, simply slammin'.
8. Downtempo/ambient track, nice piano & synths & strings.
9. Broken-beat techno with perucssive effects and a breathy fem vocal loop. Neat synth buildup in the middle.
10. Awesome snappy live-sounding drums give it a jazz-band feel, but it's a broken-beat track with plenty of oomph.