Customer Reviews

Blunted Boy Wonder

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"The Blunted Boy Wonder" - the title alone would almost be reason enough for me to buy this record. I could have never have heard of Mr Stoll or his music - only the genre he is filed under, and that wonderful title, would have been persuasive. How is that for marketing? (How is that for having a hole in the palm of your hand?)

None of that, of course, touches you curious shopper in the least, I am sure. You are only interested in the opinions of others who share your musical interests. Well, this particular buyer has been rather impressed by the record. Naturally, you need a trained ear to be able to appreciate it fully. Please do not expect an easily accessible record, you would be insulting Steve's credibility! This is underground techno, this is where the ideas are generated and this is where the less talented or inspired producers "borrow" their inspiration from (and get rich and famous).

The reason we all like music is because we associate it with emotions. When we listen to Brahms' "Wiegenlied", we remember the plinky-plonky tones sparkling from the wind-up music box out of our childhoods. When we hear the song that played when you first kissed you remember what and how you felt back then. We do not actually remember the notes and melodies; we recall the peripheral emotions accompanying them. Low-quality music attempts to force emotions into us, quality music makes us let it in willingly. And good underground minimalistic techno allows us to insert our own emotions.

Musicians like Dave Clarke, Claude Young, and Steve Stoll turn the philosophical world of music upside-down. Stoll provides us with a template, a foundation. The dancer on the colourful smoky floor, the traveller with the Walkman or the bedroom-swinger has to do the rest. Oh, his music is not heartless - not at all! Stoll's music is warm and driving. Exciting and funky. Personal even! But the message does not go any further than that. This record is not melodic, not grand. Each track consists of a - often extremely tasty - baseline that repeats itself over and over. The music is made by the filtering, the breakdowns, and the build-ups. Not by lyrics, booklet texts or arrangements. Even the track-titles are suggestive.

You will not find much help with the track-samples. They can provide you with the "sound" of Steve Stoll and minimal techno should you not be familiar with it, but they will not bring up the full strength and talent of the compositions.

The kid might have lost his sense of Leitmotif and easy rhythm, but a wonder boy remains a wonder boy - no matter how blunted he might have become.

This one gets three stars for the music and let us sneak in one more for the title, ok? Four stars.

Bram Janssen,
The Netherlands

Steve Stool is on this album very minimalistic like his other production. He plays minimalistic Detroit house music in the veins of Derrick May and Juan Atkins and many more. His music gets to you and as this album progresses you just get more and more impressed. If you are into Chicago and Detroit house this is a must.