Let's Get Killed
David Holmes
1997
Album Summary
Let's Get Killed is the second studio album by Belfast electronica DJ and producer David Holmes. It was released in the UK on 8 September 1997 through Go! Beat Records and contained two UK Top 40 singles: "Don't Die Just Yet" and "My Mate Paul"; "Gritty Shaker" was also released as a single. In addition, the album includes a re-working of the James Bond theme, retitled as "Radio 7", and a remake of Serge Gainsbourg's songs "Melody" and "Cargo Culte", retitled "Don't Die Just Yet".Let's Get Killed was Holmes's first album release in the United States, following the domestic acclaim of his debut long-player This Film's Crap Let's Slash the Seats.
WikipediaThis app claims to list "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". David Holmes named the album "Let's Get Killed". I would, to be honest, be happy if this had happened before I listened to this garbage
This album was David Holmes second release and build on his previous album ("This Films Crap, Let's Slash the Seats"), with the emphasis on building immersive film scores/soundtracks, referencing Funky downtempo broken Beat's ("Let's get Killed") , Contemporary 70's Guitar melodramatic fusion ("My Mate Paul"), lively instrumental soul ("Gritty Shaker"), or even a reinterpretation of what the James Bond theme would sound like under the musical direction of David (Radio 7). There's even an expertly implemented stab at funky dance track ("Freaknik"), but as brilliantly devised as all this tracks are.....the one truly defining moment is arguably David's finest moment, the encapsulation of New York city night time life....The string, guitar, violin orchestrated arrangements of ("Don't Die Just Yet"), a 6 minute epic that showcases David impeccable ear for composition & creation of music, that is defiantly at odds with current trends in music, but remains a blissfully realised piece of music.
What a find. I was aware of David Holmes as I loved his soundtrack to the film Out of Sight, starring a certain J-Lo. This pastiche of urban ramblings against a backdrop of urgent beats works really well.
I expected to hate this and I didn't. It wasn't like ... super interesting or anything. But it was good background music to my morning. Easy to ignore but still providing a good energy. Honestly, if these were break beats behind a rap vocal, the songs would crush. As it is, they feel mostly incomplete. Still good tracks, though.I expected to hate this and I didn't. It wasn't like ... super interesting or anything. But it was good background music to my morning. Easy to ignore but still providing a good energy. Honestly, if these were break beats behind a rap vocal, the songs would crush. As it is, they feel mostly incomplete. Still good tracks, though.
Big beats are the best, get high all the time. Props to this album for sampling both Serge Gainsbourg and the James Bond theme. Unreal stuff.
Lot of nostalgia in this one for me - takes me right back to first year uni. Love how cinematic the album feels. Could absolutely be a soundtrack to something, and it's no wonder Holmes went on to do so much soundtrack work. (He did all the Ocean's Eleven movies, amongst many others) Fave track - "Caddell Returns", maybe - it's not really about stand out tracks, it's about wandering around the neighborhood, soaking it in!
Very much of its era, got vibes of early Fat Boy Slim and people like The Wiseguys too, lounge dance groove style. Also got some early dub electronic / DnB vibes. Middle of the road, never been hugely my thing but I did listen to this kinda stuff when I was younger so I can definitely get behind it and enjoy it. Think I've heard Gritty Shaker before on one of Dave Dews chilled ibiza style compilation albums, defo heard Rodney Yates before, absolute tune. 3.5/5 but gona round up to 4 cos feelin generous.
Trippy trance intro. Very cinematic sounding. Love the breaks, samples and ambience. Great pick!
The good tracks here are absolute killers. But it suffers from incohesive voice sampling and This-90s-Album-is-too-long-itis, so it's not something I'm likely to come back to in full anytime soon. That James Bond song is fantastic though.
This is like a soundtrack for a bad spy movie. Dance music made albumatic but it's giving me some Fatboy Slim vibes. I can see this with some strobe lights but I'm not quite having fun. The drinks cost too much, I'm somehow under *and* over dressed and the stink of hugo boss haunts the air. The slice of life vocal samples are really inspired but not grabbing. Makes me miss New York and also Fail to understand New York. The middle of the album is a huge improvement over the first few tracks. Especially the reworked James Bond Theme
Unimpressed and somewhat bored by this one. Some fun ideas here, but there wasn't enough variety to keep me interested throughout the long listen. I think this is mainly due to my lack of appreciation for the EDM genre in general: while I can understand why some might enjoy this style of music, it just comes across as polished noise to me while also having a tendency to become very repetitive. With 'Let's Get Killed', I felt like I was listening to a solid soundtrack for a Nintendo 64 spy game (I unironically felt this way even before reaching the 007 cover which ended up cementing these notions immediately). While some of the songs on here might be catchy when looking at it through this made-up context, I don't necessarily feel the same way towards them knowing they come from a standalone album, let alone one that is included on the 1001 Albums You Should Hear Before You Die. It would be fine in the background as it is pretty harmless outside of some vulgar language in the talking segments, but there was nothing enticing or memorable here that would make me want to come back to it in the future, especially considering the absurdly long track lengths present throughout the whole record. I can't say that I hated it, but it was pretty mediocre in my eyes. 2/5.
Genre: Breakbeat 1/5 I am a nice, fair reviewer, who generally doesn't have many problems with the music I'm listening to. This is my 171st album generated and listened to, and this was the first time in this exercise where I was plainly disgusted throughout the wide majority of the listen. I've listened to some bad Elvis Costello, some bad Bob Dylan, and some awfully mediocre 90s post-grunge, but this easily takes the shit cake. David Holmes' 1997 album Let's Get Killed is an exercise in dullness. A true techno dud with nothing redeeming, nothing that changes the form, and nothing that keeps you interested. The sampling is lazy and bad, the beats are monotonous and never-changing, and the effort to give himself (a white man from the UK) any form of NYC street cred is cringy, bizarre, and almost gentrifying. Nothing progresses, nothing excites, nothing is moving throughout the entire runtime. There's a song on the album, Freaknik, that starts with a man telling a story about being kicked out of a bar for dancing. He ends his story by saying "how am I supposed to release...this...ENERGY!", and it's immediately followed by 5-6 minutes of utter nothingness, in what appears to be the least energetic followup to a man screaming that I have ever heard. Radio 7, and its unbelievably lazy James Bond sample, is among the most aggravating tracks I've ever sat through. This is not good. A complete non-starter, not essential in any way, and takes up a spot that any other album in the universe should own. There is no purpose to have this album on this list. A waste of an hour that I will never get back.
Een soort van instrumentale electro-jazz. Absoluut niets wat ik uit mezelf zou opzetten. Maar ik heb er vreemd genoeg wel van genoten (op de achtergrond). Eentje om te onthouden
Amazing. New York Street sounds in the 90's with a eclectic sound. And he's Irish
Pretty cool 90s electronica. A lot of fun. Cool look at that moment where hiphop and electronica were just starting to part and go their separate ways.
What a peculiar album... Feels like every song is from a different genre and artist even. Got some psychedelic, some hip hop. Loads of really good instrumentals and funky sounds. It's a bit of a journey, I really liked it. Super chill at the end.
A real banger, some tracks were real long or short for what seemed to be no reason but definitely a good one
Heel vet, ga dit zeker op zetten tijdens het chillen, zijn tijd ook ver vooruit nog nog steeds relevant, gave mix van verschillende soorten edm
I liked it. I had head some of it before not knowing the name. Some of the street talk was amusing some annoying. The music was very cinematic and energetic. Good stuff.
You know that situation where you don't really know what to think of it so you just smile and say: "oh, da's speciaal!"? Well, this album is exactly that.
ну из всего чила пока что самая годнота. прикольные внятные мотивы, настроение чувствуется, сэмплы довольно интересные (последний трек вообще эпик). Конечно, это всё ещё фоновая музыка, но хорошая фоновая музыка, за работой вполне могу включить, 7/10
Big beat mit technoider Eskalationsfähigkeit. Dazu die damalig so viel aufkommende wie wirkmächtige Verwendung von Field Recordings. Zwischen Norman Cook und James Lavelle sitzen Bass-schwere 3.8
When thinking about my appetite for music without lyrics, a few contradictions appear. I'm not someone who focuses on the lyrics, if it sounds good, then I'd listen to it. Lyrics is just a bonus, or a part of the context for me. Good lyrics with terrible sound... I might just read poems instead. But music without lyrics seems... incomplete sometimes. It's seems difficult for songs -- if they ARE called "songs" -- like these to be a solid whole experience. But I do listen to songs without lyrics, or even without context. Pink Floyd's epic 20+ minute "Atom Heart Mother" comes to mind. The track is as nonsense as the title, yet I like it. But I'm still struggling to justify why, for example, I like classical music of Chopin or Beethoven but dislike something like jazz. What makes a wordless track listenable, at least for me? "Let's Get Killed" is an hour of electronica fiddling with an aim to create movie soundtracks, and I enjoyed it. I was moved by the beats and the instrumental fiddlings in this album. But why? My hypothesis is that some wordless tracks, like the ones in this album, takes me into an adventure. It makes me conjure images of scenes or emotions. The way a violin passionately rejoices, or the beats weave a sense of conflict. Whatever the reason. I like this album. Though I might only come back to it if I want a good background music. But still, it's energetic and quite fun for a background music (ignoring the conversation snippets, of course).
Interesting. Great use of the street-recorded spoken word. Great background music for creating.
Unexpectedly good to listen to. Love that the vocal samples were recorded by them on the streets of New York, adds something to the great tunes for me.
Not much in the way of lyrics, sounds like a soundtrack great listen though
Das fand ich ganz cool. Ist schon sehr dreist lieder die so einfach zu greifen sind sieben minuten lang laufen zu lassen aber seis drum, also hab im moment nicht wirklich drauf gewarter wanns aufhört. Musikalisch war auch viel ganz nett auch wenns teilweise imo bisschen zu sehr nach etwas klang was iwer beim kiffen anmacht. Das james bond ding war iwie dümmlich aber nicht dümmlich genug um es deswegen zu feiern
it was alright. a very interesting middle point of most electronic stuff i’ve heard. enjoyed
This takes me back to the clubs in the 90s. This album is very indicative of the 90s electronic clubs sound, bonus, the segue's between songs with the live dialogue is clever - especially with the James Bond Theme. 4/5
This is my kind of music, though I didn’t know David Holmes when I started listening. Innovative DJ trip hop with lots of mixing and sampling. How did I not know this. Reminded me a little of the Avalanches- who came a few years later.
I might've found my first new niche thanks to 1001. Loved some of the samples, especially the interview fragments/monologues - they gave a lot of character and life to this album. As of the music - it wasn't all that fascinating, but it definitely wasn't boring - had some interesting choices and was mixed well. Overall, it's just a great record. Highlight: Caddell Returns
A great compilation of sounds - great to listen to in the background. It feels stimulating, it's interesting, it plays with some fun concept - making it simply fun. It's difficult to put into words what makes this type of album good, so let me end simply with this: despite there being little words, I felt as if I've heard a really engaging story. Highlights: Let's get Killed, Freaknik, Radio 7
The first recommended song after this album let me know this is the guy who did the Ocean's Eleven soundtrack! Interesting. I enjoyed the album, it was maybe a touch further in the background than I wanted, but still good music and it had some interesting ambient sound / conversation that helped to tell a story through the album.
Chill thinking Qunatic maybe a bit better. This clips with relaxing 'electronica' nice!
Really feeling the grooves and beats here today. I loved the samples. Could see myself roadtripping with this on.
I'd forgotten how good this album was, but then it was the late 90s. Love the way the genuine conversations are woven into the tracks.
This resonates to a late 90s early 00s soundtrack. It's like quintessential of that time in mind. The field recordings of NYC pimps and drug dealers feels a little exploitative.
one of the coolest albums on this list so far. with albums only providing an audio experience, it's harder to string together a story or theme, unlike other forms of media. but you wouldn't think so with this album! david holmes did a great job using only electronic sounds and minimal, intermittent dialogue to create a story. it comes as no surprise to me that holmes has created the music for many movies and tv shows after listening to this album. i recognized holmes' name instantly because i am absolutely obsessed with the ocean's franchise, and it was such a treat to hear some of the ocean's soundtrack in this album ("gritty shaker", "rodney yates") in a slightly different format. i can have a small easter egg, as a treat. and the james bond number was an interesting homage, too!
Snuck up and surprised me. Expected hiphop but got electric jazz-ish with a very solid beatline.
I love this: it relaxes me, doesn't bore and the James bond theme cover fills me with nostalgia.
Some nice electronic music, really enjoy the vibes in some of the songs while in others it can feel a bit too much at times. Generally works really well in the background
Not what I was expecting, had a couple of songs I recognised. I surprisingly enjoyed the album
Really good stuff, not sure I've listened to an album before but always liked his music. Best song Don't Die Just Yet..
Made me feel like I was in a Mr Robot montage where I was probably hacking something in a garage while someone else was spray painting in a dark alley. Definitely got Tetris 64 vibes from a lot of the tracks. Not really my bag this, but not awful!
I don’t get the appeal. It’s okay. But it’s not fatboy slim or the propellers or chemical brothers. It’s not that interesting.
The interviews sprinkled into the mix add a sense of time and place. The music itself can be a bit forgettable at times, though.
David Holmes album was a pleasant surprise. For something listed under the “Electronic” genre it wasn’t what I expected. Coming out the same year as “Homewark” by Daft Punk I wasn’t sure what to expect. I hadn’t really heard of Holmes either. The album gives off a soundtrack vibe that sticks you into New York. The only vocals are that of New Yorkers in conversation that had been recorded by Holmes on a trip in the late 80’s. The music and style puts you there, some of the bass lines and drum beats are very late 80’s but can also have a 90’s flare. It is not in any way French house, nor is it meant to be. “Radio 7”” is the only song that I felt was a little cheeky. Essentially it is a remix of the classic James Bond film theme, it is well done. Overall I’d give this a 7.5 out of 10.
It wasn't bad, but pretty sleepy and uneventful. I liked the james bond remix, and Don't Die Just yet was good too. Skits were fun
I liked this album quite a bit. Weirdly, it gave me almost Khraungbin vibes
Not a genre I’m familiar with but enjoyed it nonetheless. An atmospheric and largely enjoyable range of tracks set against narrative that paints an engaging and sometimes troubling NY backdrop
-I like the rock vibes in the bass and guitar in "Don't Die Just Yet" -It was quite good. A strong 3. Nothing really compels me to go listen again though, which holds it back from being a 4
I'm a big fan of David Holmes work on the "Ocean's" movies, so when I saw this album come up, I knew I was in for a treat. This album almost feels like a movie within itself, the tellings of the lower class of NYC and the diverse scenes that make up their landscape. You get the dialogue snippets from unusual characters, and dance beats that breath life like Time Square itself. Thinking of this as a film score certainly enhances your experience with the record even if electronica isn't your wheelhouse, much like it isn't mine. Having a 007 Theme remix in there certainly helps too! Overall though, it's not something I would listen to recreationally. Favorite Song: My Mate Paul Least Favorite: Caddell Returns
Kind of like a soundtrack to a movie. Background music really. Best Tracks: My Mate Paul; Radio 7; Don't Die Just Yet
I like this style of music on occasion and this is an album of the genre I like. I like the concept behind it and the tracks were easy to work to.
Not usually my thing, but enjoyed some of it, the conversation preamble at the start of tracks is annoying.
Aardige beats soms, maar verder niet heel interessant. Ik vind het allemaal wat lafjes op een paar nummers na. Mijn favorieten zijn "Gritty Shaker" en "Radio 7". ***
Loops of mediocre beats. Nothing that was over the top and my toe hasnt tapped on one single single song yet. Its just trying.
Instrumental prawie murzynski, bo trip hop stworzony przez wyspiarza z belfastu Davida Holmesa, ktory jednak brzmi zadziwiajaco hamerykansko, przyczyna tego jest to, ze inspiracja do plyty byla wycieczka do hameryki, stolicy murzynskosci, wiec nowego jorku, stad rowniez sam tytul krazka, lets get killed, bo gdy roamujesz bronksowe getta z drogim sprzetem audio nie trudno zostac za niego zabitym, wiec luzny koncept tworzy sie preaktycznie sam za sprawa samplowanych postaci getta i brzmienia miasta, album ma prawie rowna godzine i podzielony jest na 13 trakow, z ktorych najbardziej zwraca na siebie uwage radio 7 przez zsamplowany motyw klasycznego bonda, poza nim na plejke dodalem jeszcze rodney yates, ktory jest utrzymany w zdecydowanie szybszym tempie niz reszta plyty, ktora moze aspirowac nawet do miana downtemo jako glownego stylu, no i jeszcze tytulowy lets get killed, ktory swietnie oddaje klimat suspensu walki o zycie na nieznanych ulicach obcego miasta, jestem zaskoczony, ze tak rowny albumik utrzymany w klimatach okolo hip hopowych przywedrowal od dja z belfastu
As I’m listening to Rodney Yates I’m thinking — this has an Ocean’s Eleven (2001) vibe… sure enough, David Holmes is all over that soundtrack.
I didn't hate it, would listen to it again. Seems very specific to the era in which it was created.
Hmm, I like to think that I remember this era pretty well but I'd never heard of this artist or album. The music was decent - it was like a soundtrack for a movie set in NYC - but I'm not sure of the criteria for inclusion on this list.
It was pretty cool and had some real vibes, but I had it on in the background and nothing necessarily jumped out at me.
Very 1990s big beat sound, but very good fun albeit with some sweary NYC interviewees! Fun.
Good, but not much stuck out to me. Favorites: "Let's Get Killed", "Gritty Shaker", "Rodney Yates"
Ganz cool als wirkliches Hintergrund-Album. Es "groovet" eher also auf Dauer einfach nicht besonders interessant aber voll solide für das was es ist, krass dass davon früher zwei Song in den UK-Charts waren. 6/10
New album and new music for me. There were some good surprises on this album. I added "My Mate Paul", and "Don't Die Just Yet" into my personal playlist. I really wish I could cut out the dialogues, and the shorter tracks. Let's Get Killed could possibly have been a 4 star album that I would want to come back to if the dialogues weren't included, but that is not the album that Holmes recorded. Does this sink the album to 2 stars? I REALLY want to skip the spoken dialogue recordings. I guess I'll compromise with 3.
This had some good beats and was a kool vibe but can't say it was particularly memorable. Probably wouldn't seek it out to listen to again but definitely enjoyed it.
This was a bit meh. The only song I liked was completely sampled from Serge Gainsbourg
Ah this is cool! I love that these recordings he got in NYC when he was 17 on a tape recorder. Some songs I'm finding pretty annoying/boring in parts. But I am also really enjoying other parts so it's very mixed feelings. Not sure if I'll listen again.
Best Song: Radio 7. The bit about Bond was great, as was the play on his theme. Worst Song: Head Rush on Lafayette. Because the preceding songs started with (what appear to be) candid recordings of people talking, the spoken word here ends up feeling forced in comparison. Give me more of those realistic, bizarre slices of life. Overall: Nice relaxed beats interspersed with strange street interviews. Nothing stands out all too distinctly, but overall the album does a good job of maintaining this sort of "hardened mellow" flow. Good background/working music.
It's not bad. It's not great. I liked the cinematic style songs, didn't see the added value of the samples of people on the street talking.
"Wow look at us, we're so cool" is the sentiment I had with this album. It wasn't too bad and the sound effects are ok. Quite intense, not necessarily in a bad way. Not for everyday listening IMO.
It was pretty good background music for working. Nothing overly exciting but some fun beats and melodies in there.
I'm of two minds on this one. If I heard any single cut from this on radio or streaming, I would make a point to check out who/what it is. But listening to the whole thing seemed interminably long and somewhat tedious.
A concept album of sorts about New York in regards to contemporary life, the four essences of hip-hop and punk rock lifestyles amid the surfaces of electronic music (samples of James Bond's theme abound in Radio 7). One of the more imaginative cinematic albums of its time period. Favorites: Let's Get Killed, Gritty Shaker, Radio 7, Slashers Revenge, Don't Die Just Yet.
Electronics with samples of NY street sounds. Good rhythm, lots of bass.
I have nothing against this particular David Holmes album. It's decent big beat / electronica overall. But as I've already said elsewhere, I have Dimery's full list, and I'm quite infuriated by his (and his contributors') shorsightedness when it comes to many other important genres, with glaring ommissions in them. Just look at jazz, for instance. No "Mingus, Ah, Um", no "Blue Train" or "Giant Steps" for Coltrane, no Shabaka Hutchings album from one of his many projects, not to mention some very important Miles Davis records missing here and there. And I'm mostly talking about legendary names here, not even *true* obscure stuff. So a decent but minor big beat album compared to those absent records doesn't weigh much in terms of cultural importance. Which is *why* I can't include it on my own list. Sometimes it's whole genres that are criminally overlooked. Apart from two releases by Slint and Sigur Rós, "post-rock" albums are nowhere to be seen. Where are those all-time masterpieces by Mogwai, Tortoise, Godspeed You! Black Emperor or A Silver Mount Zion? Seriously, guys, "trippy" music didn't stop with the sixties or the seventies. Those later masterpieces should be part of the so-called "canon", more than stuff by Quicksilver Messenger Service, for example. Such post-rock records have been here for a long time now, even for a few decades for some of them, and new generations are going back to those records as we speak. Who's rediscovering "Happy Trails" today, apart us music nerds through this app? Nobody. Likewise, post-hardcore, and emo are probably niche genres, but they should have some decent representatives in the list. And the same goes with the admittedly quite recent post-punk revival in the UK. "Hookworms" is only a very minor example of that recent revival selected by Dimery and co, and the problem is that it won't be remembered the way Idles, Fontaines D.C., Shame, Squid, Yard Act, black midi or Black Country New Road are going to be for sure. And we should also cross the pond and mention the outrageous absence of many current key American artists of all stripes and styles, from Billie Eilish to Big Thief, from Low to Weyes Blood, from Sharon Van Etten to Parquet Courts, or from Turnstile to Women / Vietcong / Preoccupations. Dimery and friends are sure ticking a few important boxes culturally speaking with records by Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Lana Del Rey and Fiona Apple. But it's not nearly enough. And it's still very "mainstream". Make room for more important stuff now. Please... Album left to review of just listen to: more than 900, I've temporarily lost count here. Essential listens I'll keep on my list: Half so far. Albums I *might* include: a quarter. Albums I consider not essential at all: a quarter, including this one.
There is some interesting stuff on this but also some questionable stuff. Like why sample the James Bond soundtrack? Anyway, kinda fun
Nie jest to album na 4, bo niektóre utwory to naprawdę elevator music. Ale mocne 3, bliżej 3.5 nawet, bo są też świetne utwory jak "Don't die just yet". Wstawki "bondowe" mega spoko. Bardzo nierówny albumik
Taki zestaw sampli, znowu sobie coś leci w tle, nie przyciąga uwagi, do tego mniej eksperymentalne niż poprzedni w zestawieniu DJ Shadow. Mało angażująca, na pewno też bardziej taneczna niż do słuchania w domu. Nic szczególnego.
At first I found this album quite boring. But as it went on I played a fun game of "What movie scenario would this song be played in?" It made it a little more fun to listen to.
Listened to on 5/5/22 2.5/5 Favorite song: radio 7 This album was chaotic and felt like you were listening to music full blast in the middle of a city but the twist on the bond song was really fun
I wasn't expecting an instrumental album. A few more field recordings and found sounds and this would have been right up my alley. Still a good listen though.
I was in the right mood for this one. It's a great sit and think album. Relaxing and laid back, with just enough oomph to get the brain going.
Really intriguing and cool use of dialog/recordings. Not my favorite but the music is good. Not sure if I would listen again, so only 3/5 stars.
Pleasant enough but didn't really hold my attention - felt like a Film soundtrack.
File under that sort of Need for Speed 90s beats and samples electronicy nonsense
I think the guy talking in the background on a few of his tracks just learned the F word. Ambient beats album, was good enough music to have in the background while working but not sure the reason it would be on the list. 3 for the beats being good, came very close to dropping it to a 2 because the spoken parts are really bad.
James Bond sample caught my ear but everything else was just background
We’ve had a lot of this early electronic music and it’s pretty good, just not very remarkable
On est dans un genre ambiant ici, mais avec une bonne groove. Quelque part près des environnements de Kid Koala, Jaga Jazzist ou encore Amon Tobin, trois artistes que j’apprécie particulièrement. Ça s’écoute très bien.
Ça ne vieilli pas très bien. Aussi, Ça fait une bonne musique d’ambiance pour travailler ou dans un film (Ocean’s 11), mais c’est un peu vide pur s’assoire et faire de l’écoute active.
Tiene elementos piolas pero hasta ahí. Es un poco dificil de escuchar. Rodney yates 💫
Fun beats and triphop vibes. Not super sticky but I did enjoy a bit of it.
I grew up in 2000s and electronic music has evolved a lot. But this record sounds interesting for a 90s album. I think it ages well, I don't think I have anything against this record, cause it doesn't tell much. I'd say it's decent and kind of unique compare to nowadays formulaic electronic music.
Comme vous le savez déjà, elrapeze et moi-même entretenons des relations en dents de scie avec Robert, notre castor national. Il y a quelques semaines, nous l'avons mis en garde au sujet de l'anormale quantité d'albums dont la durée excédait les soixante minutes. Malgré une légère amélioration les jours suivants, notre ami continue de nous provoquer, notamment avec cet album d'une durée de cinquante-neuf minutes et quarante-cinq secondes. Fais très attention, Robert…
Really interesting experimental electronic music, not really clicking with me tho Favorites: Radio 7, Don't die just yet
If a friend had not told me, I wouldn't have known that David Holmes was known for his cinema soundtracks. That said, I might have still drawn some kind of parallel. Because there is something about this album that has a cinematic quality to it. I can imagine this music over an artsy film about dark, seedy city underground people and dealings. All the music is touched by a little bit of grit, distortion, or mystery. Not every soundtrack can garner these kinds of visuals, so I find it very impressive (but not surprising, knowing what I know now) that this non-soundtrack produces such images befitting a soundtrack. Overall, I liked this but didn't love it. It was interesting, but didn't blow me away. It was definitely a unique listen from this project thus far, though!
From the opening notes I expected more from this album. pretty cookie cutter 90s electronic big beat.
Industrial hip-hop/electronica/lo-fi sounds often juxtaposed with a backdrop of raw conversations from the underbelly of New York. Relatively easy listen and although the runtime is coming close to an hour, it went by very quickly. What I found most interesting is that David Holmes is not only known for his DJing but also has a long association with creating musical scores, most notably his frequent collaborations with Steven Soderbergh on films such as Killing Eve and the Oceans Trilogy. Best: Rodney Yates Worst: Freaknik
It’s the repetition of electronic/dance music without too much memorable about it. Almost a tame, lame Endtroducing. 5/10
Sounds like a hip-hop record without rhymes. The only MCs on this tape are in the form of recordings of conversation which set a mood of real street level humanity. The sounds are all over the place but cohesive enough to make a good album. At first I thought this might be a house album but I was pleasantly treated with some synth tunes, jazzy beats, etc. More Moby than Aphex Twin but still an enjoyable listen.
Kind of an Aphex Twin "lite" but enjoyable enough. I have a soft spot for 90s electronic music.
Groovy, trippy, great flow. This could have been just a hodgepodge of borrowed sounds on repeat, but it feels very unified. I really enjoyed this. Fave Songs: Freaknik, Caddell Returns, My Mate Paul, Radio 7, Gritty Shaker, Slashers Revenge
Like the breakbeat/triphop stuff some of it's a bit to 'uneasy' for a casual listen during work. Might work better for a late night booze infused listen. The spotify radio that came on after this was perfect
Cool trip hop sound, but I found it faded into the background a bit rather than hitting big highs. 3/5
74/100: This was a cool album in a genre I never would normally actively seek out but am glad I was forced to explore. I really enjoyed the ambience and atmosphere this album created; in fact, I'd say this album surpasses most albums in that regard. That's obviously not enough for me to give this a score that surpasses most albums, though. Beyond the atmosphere invoked by this album, it is mostly just drums, bass, and whispered vocals. It's really cool for a few songs and is incredibly well done on songs like "Radio 7," but it's a bit worn out by the end of the album. I likely have that mindset solely because of my music taste, but it exists nonetheless.
Well, seeing that this was from a British DJ that I've never heard of did not inspire a lot of confidence in me based on my previous experience with this list, but I can at least understand why this album is on here. The samples from NYC including a lot of conversations with people associated with New York's underbelly made for an interesting listen. Overall the music is uninspiring. Not bad, just not really breaking any ground for the time. I was looking for something else to listen to a couple of songs in, but still it's a cool idea for an album 3/5
For the most part, the drum-driven grooves are of their time and genre. Every track could live as part of a soundtrack, but the skits fail to attach them into a free-standing structure. My body doesn't pick up anything particularly danceable either (N.B. I can't dance and this criticism is hypocritical given my enjoyment of Autechre's more abstract moments). This is something I notice with a lot of breakbeat: It's music that seems to be "about" other sound, but in an unpleasantly distant way. Because of all that, the Bond cover (for its explicit object), Rodney Yates (for its lounge jazz), and Caddell Returns (for its novel instruments) are highlights. I could see myself enjoying an album of cuts similar to Caddell in particular. Looking back, I see I gave Play this same rating, which feels a bit strange. For now, this seems like a strictly worse project. But it's not offensively bad at all and that response may come down to simple unfamiliarity.
I respect the skill that goes into making this kind of music, but the repetition kills me. 90% of the album was like a chisel being hammered into my skull. However, the one track I liked, I really liked. Best track: Don't Die Just Yet.
Not very memorably instrumental stuff. Not bad, just nothing too special.
I was made curious after having read the album information. Listened to it, nice, but I don't think it will get a replay. To me it is a lot of samples put together. The song ‘Gritty Shaker’ made me think of the Elvis Presley mix from Junkie XL ‘A little less conversation’.
A lot of the same thing over and over. Would have been a lot more effective as a 25 minute EP.
Had some funky sections especially some of the bass lines which I enjoyed but largely bored me. The tracks do sound to me like they were made with films in mind. The odd track here and there were decent enough for that but not interesting enough as an album to listen to start to finish. 2*
Gave it a couple of listens but nothing grabbed me. Pretty ho hum to be honest. 2 Stars!
De eerste tonen waren veelbelovend, maar uiteindelijk bleek het toch meestal niet zo goed te zijn.
I think it's boring! Was it in lots of soundtracks? Lock, Stock? Did we play it in Andy's Records? Very familiar.
Cool transitions between songs and a few highlights, but nothing really drawing me back.
Говнарь не пропёрся. Унылый пустой звук, который хоть как-то адекватно смотрелся бы лишь в формате сандтрека. Но это не саундтрек, даже не фейковый, это - полноценный релиз! Я бы, в принципе, признал ценность, будь альбом записан на заре электронной эры, когда-нибудь в конце 70-ых например. Но нет, это 1997 год! Да ещё и коммерческий успех. Зачем это люди брали? Тут не пофлексить, не почилить, по эмоциям не отбивается, просто музыкальные обои. Кое-как может запомниться лишь мотив My Mate Paul, да и тот не стоит своих 5 минут хронометража. Ухо выцепляет тему Джеймса Бонда, но мозг смысла её наличия здесь не выцепляет. По итогу - одна из самых посредственных работ в рамках 1001.
Weird hodgepodge of drum and bass with easy listening, with voice samples to not get bored, meh.