Steve Lawler [Dark Drums - Volume 2] 

I played this disc almost a year ago [14th November 2011], and there i expressed my feelings about my first ever listening experience, i felt it was monotonous to a degree, but also an excitement that i was developing into something new, i was excited enough to want to listen to this again, and that time would tell if i would fall in love with the album, well this is my second listen, and i must admit that my feelings have improved for the album, i now see that each track has more variety than i at first thought, also each track is so more entertaining than on first listen, yes it's working!, i'm really delving into new areas of different genres to love, i'm more excited about this disc than i was before, plus i'm more excited about music than i was ever before.

Steve Lawler is an English DJ and Record Producer, he's now roughly 39, he made this disc in 2001, ok not exactly his own music, but using other peoples music as a base to create different mixes from, i like the front cover [photo by Carlos Amoedo], of some shutters on a window, or slats on a door or something, i like the fish eye feel of the whole thing, nice curved lines that are in fact really straight in life, plus the excellent different hues of blue, a really creative choice of a front cover.

The tracks that really affected me this time were 4, 6-8 & 11, yes there's a great sense of individuality that i didn't hear the first time around, now i see all these 'identical twins' as actually separate and different pregnancies, and i feel that the very best tracks are 4 & 11, notice also that i've rubbed some number transfers on the back, as each track is one out, and inadvertently calling the short intro as track one, when really it's tagged into the real first track [called track 2 on this album], and thus really there's only 11 tracks total, so here's a short synopsis of these two tracks.

4 Frankie Carbone - Everybody, the best track on the album as far as i'm concerned, there's a really excellent beat to the whole thing, with a wonderful wood block tapping rhythm, with a bass warble alongside, now that's a great start to the track, yes it's monotonous in certain ways, but that's the whole point, it consistently gets on your good nerves, further along after a few diversions, the main theme returns [3:03+], this time with a stronger beat / rhythm, a lovely moment, and the same happens two minutes later [5:18], wow strong moments of satisfaction, because the whole disc is a mix, means that each track merges and transforms into the next, but even the transition is great.
11 Robert Owens - I'll Be Your Friend / Foremost Poets - Moonraker, this track starts at 1:02:35 on the YouTube link, with two tracks mixed over each other, while the Robert Owens beat goes on, the Foremost Poets tracks 'announcement' introduces the piece, a mans deep bass voice as a DJ [0:00-2:36], warning people over the intercom 'please do not be alarmed, remain calm...', deep and electronic, slowed down slightly, it's like Barry White slurring away, i love it, he goes on and on, in almost a rhythmic but not rap style, '...the past, the present, the future', the musical rhythm is excellent, using two extremes, one complex deep bass drum, while a simpler treble drum beat over it, after the vocal intro, the music die down to a throbbing bass [2:35-2:58], and then opens out into more complex cymbals [2:58+], the guy naturally seems to know what will musically float your boat, the last half of the track is quite repetitive 'i'll be your friend', almost add infinitum, towards the close a nice trumpet solo comes [7:10-8:21], the ending is nice, the thing closes down into a bubbly bass rhythm solo [9:20-9:45], another disc that i'm falling in love with.

Various Artists [Total Science - Drum & Bass]

Well i guess officially here's my first Drum & Bass album for my Blog, over this last year, i've turned my ears towards acquiring more Electronic / Trance / Dance etc music, and i've been searching on Ebay for discs under £1, and this is one that i saw and liked the look of, 7 tracks on each disc, must be nearly ten minutes per track, in essence it's a shot in the dark somewhat, who knows what i'm going to get, but i feel i must overturn the strangest rocks to see what's underneath, a musically roving ear will find new and wonderful sounds, yep i might be a 'musical octopus', but i'm still trying to grow a ninth tentacle!, i was so excited about these discs today, this is what music is all about, falling in love with something you thought was beyond yourself.

There's an excitement in the air as i listened to this album, i was wowed by the rhythms and the beats, but especially the sounds of the drums, different drums, bass drums as well as treble drums, and cymbals too, though i'm sure a lot of it is electronic sounds, as well as samples of real drums, i found disc one to be superior to disc two, and the tracks that i really enjoyed were 2 & 5, 
2 Salsa Flavour by Icons [Justice & Blame], lasting just over 6 minutes, as it's title suggests, it has a jungle flavour to it, it's opening is excellent, with some nice treble drums that die away in a superb way, as well as bongo's [0:00-0:22], and then some primate in the rainforest screams like Tarzan! [0:22+], that sample is excellent as it keeps coming back again and again, it's the best thing out of the tune, the whole thing really gets under your skin.
5 Subtropic by E-Z Rollers, one of the longer tracks at just over 10 minutes, starts off like a Jean Michel Jarre Oxygene track, but then the gorgeous hard woodblocks come in [0:22+], really stunning, so crystal clear and bright, again there's a jungle feel to it as the title suggests, with some high treble frog croaking, it really warms up nicely [about 1:50+], the beats deepen, and it creates a nice trance, cymbals start to ring in somewhere [say 2:42+], and it's certainly layered in a satisfying way, quite repetitive yet hypnotic, there's enough subtle change and variation to keep me entranced, halfway through there's a lull, synths sound like strings, it's a great respite [5:47-6:10], i must admit it does slightly outstay it's welcome towards the end, better if it was shortened to 8 minutes or something, the high drums and cymbal attack get quite frantic and hard driven, female whispering at the end, and the outro is machine gun drumming.

The final verdict is that this is really new to me, but i'm hearing new things that i like, my ears are excited by all the new possibilities, i'll certainly get into some more Drum & Bass in the future.