Customer Reviews

Fundacion NYC (Dlx)

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

First, let's have a moment of perspective:

Studio technology began to progress by leaps and bounds in the mid-to-late 1960's, an evolution in correlation to the boundary-stretching of music in general during this chaotic time. The Beatle's seminal *St. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band* utilized samples, loops and creative effects in a way that could not be reproduced in a live environment; Phil Spector's famous 'Wall of Sound' fashioned monuments of overdubbing that, upon final production, gave the listener a sense of vastness, of space and depth not normally associated with the verse-chorus-verse construction of top-40 pop. Naturally the techniques pioneered during this era have expanded exponentially in the subsequent four decades, with virtually any effect or sound-fusion now possible to the music-pioneer...the only limitation being the artist's imagination. In fact, technology has _condensed_ to such an extreme extent that, for a small investment, virtually anyone can have a miniature studio on their desktop, with the same technology that used to cost thousands of dollars now available at the click of a mouse.

These are perilous times for the disc-jockey: Ipods, file-sharing and mixing software have all but made the occupation obsolete - until now, with the advent of Ableton Live. By mixing together individual WAVS of sound through this sophisticated software, one can manipulate, chop-up, reconstruct and remix songs in an entirely new way, have a far more "hands on" process to the dynamic construction of the mix. World famous DJ Sasha has championed the creative benefits of Ableton for the past couple of years, claiming it has re-invigorated his style and artistic goals. *Involver*, Sasha's last album, was the debut of his new Ableton-inspired methods, a multi-texture masterpiece of breakbeat prog-trance. Now comes *Fundacion*, Sasha's 'Mix Album' for 2005, a showcase for how he uses Ableton in a live environment - compiled and spliced together in just a few days, it captures the raw outflow of his recent New York City residency. And like most Sasha releases, it's pretty far ahead of the bell curve: at least three or four proper listens are needed to understand the sum totality of this new creative endeavor.

With that said, *Fundacion* is probably my least favorite Sasha release to date, though more for the actual music 'involved' (pardon the pun) than the mixing or programming, both of which are exemplary. The electronic club scene, as of late, has existed in a sort of treading-water state: after the fallout of trance circa 1999, and the dark progressive bollox that followed in its wake, the return of melody and a generally more creative approach to production have (thankfully) alleviated some of the stagnant airs that seemed to infuse dance-dungeons. After the big progressive-breaks scene of 2004, the club sound and the DJs that play it have veered towards a nostalgia-laden, 80's-influenced mishmash of electro-pop, tech and house, an almost desperate attempt to put fun back into the music - some funk and soul into an essentially machine-dominated enterprise. Unfortunately the results have been middling: most of the 80's remixes as of late are inferior to the source material, while recent mixes by Klienenberg, Seaman etc. come off less than impressive when compared to that which came before. Sasha had already dipped his hand in electro with the much-debated 'Watching Cars Go By' remix on *Involver*; with this new album, he plunges into the genre head-first, crafting in turn perhaps his most experimental and overall seamless mix-album to date - and consequently, perhaps his least enjoyable.

A warning of this arrives early in the mix, with the ridiculously cheesy (yet appropriate for electro) vocodor intro; out of it gently pulses 'Four Squares', a standout track and the only unabashed melody of the album. From this point on it is futile to discuss individual tracks, for Sasha's Ableton set-up, coupled with his new Maven controller (I refuse to succumb to the meme and put it all in caps), allows him to easily mix elements of a track four or five songs before it emerges, and to keep other elements - a snare, high-hat, or trance-riff - long after the song from which it came has left the mix. Overall: the mix builds through sexy 4/4 grooves over the course of 25 minutes, then abruptly changes course with the introduction of the Holden songs. From here *Fundacion* takes on an experimental, fairly minimalist approach for the remainder of the running time, peaking with the Depeche Mode remix of 'Behind the Wheel'. After this, Sasha strips it down to a monolithic soundscape of effects and (very) prominent 4/4 kickdrum, peaking it again with the guitar-growling Goldfrap tune and the colorless outro. Although I can appreciate what Sasha is doing here - and can even hear the sections built entirely out of different elements, including the much-touted "five songs at once" peak - it doesn't excuse how utterly boring the last thirty minutes of *Fundacion* get... listening through it every time becomes a chore, an endurance test, to the point that the fade-out of the distorted vox of the last track comes as a much-needed relief to the overall gloom of monotony (and perhaps that's the point).

Granted, this mix is devoted to his New York residency, and this sort of dark electro-house might be all the rage in that ever-clanging city environment...but compared to all Sasha has done in the last few years, this album comes up more than a bit short. There's not much 'fun' in *Fundacion,* despite the obvious intent; but, overall, this is an extremely interesting album, revolutionary in its own way, and a strong indication of the potential to come. Hopefully Sasha will ditch this trendy electro-house sound and come up with something more substantial for *Fundacion L.A.*

3 ½ stars, rounded down. Recommended for DJs and Sasha enthusiasts.

Wow, what the heck just happened to me? I remember putting the CD in my car stereo at lunch... but what transpired after that was some sort of out of body experience. It felt like someone lopped off the top of my skull and poured in a mixture of warm taffy, a running chainsaw and a fluffy cloud. When I tried to go back to work, I stared at the wall of my cubicle for a long time.

I'm not quite sure how to wrap my head around this CD, but, without a doubt, it's a stroke of genius. The complexity of the mixes and tweaking of each track in this CD weave a sonic tapestry that, with each listen, expose new threads of sound that make up a very complex whole. The lines we are used to drawing between songs in the past are becoming more increasingly blurred in the electronic realm. The desire to go to this track or that track and skipping around to the best songs on a CD is a practice that is slowly getting thrown out the window. Electronic mixes have a greater purpose as a whole, rather than a sum of its parts. Sasha's latest work has taken that concept to a new level. Fundacion is a concept more than just a CD. Pushing the boundaries of sound creation and manipulation, the battle for the newest frontier in music is being fought right here.

This is not a band trying to push the edge of musical instruments that have been around for fifty years. This is something you've never heard before. Buy this work of art, and be a part of the future of music.

I thought it was time someone gave this CD its proper due review, rather than the 5-star "it was good" or 1-star "I didn't like it".

This newest release from Sasha sees the internationally renowned DJ/producer/remixer create a set of nu-age House tracks to achieve the dance floor/club feeling that Involver hinted at ("Dorset Perception" & "On My Own"), but never quite delivered (going for the chilled side of electronica instead). Having abandoned vinyl and CDs since his last mix album, the stunning Involver, Sasha once again makes full use of his Ableton/Maven digital mixing setup, but this time in a club environment.

Indeed, his mixing skills using the Maven have reached such a level that he doesn't merely phase songs into each other, but rather combines them into a unique collage (as the cover suggests) that is so wonderful it evokes a kind of bliss of its own. I would say without a doubt this is the finest mixing I have ever heard, Sasha is in a league of his own. The album is worth repetitive listens if for nothing more than to (try) and see where tracks start, finish, and in many, cases re-emerge. Five-star mixing in anyone's club (or CD player).

Now to the music. As aforementioned Sasha has fashioned this collage of cuts purely out of House tracks, no breakbeats here (damn). The awesome space-age intro track "Rise of the Machine" gives a good idea of the nu/electro-house vibe Sasha brings across the whole album. Track 2 "Four Squares" (perfect opener) is pure ambient bliss; this then proceeds to morph seamlessly into a couple of sweet laid back grooves which seamlessly explode with energy on tracks 5, 6, & 7. Track 8 "99 & A Half" is a bit a dull moment but once the next tunes, two mixes of Holden & Thompson's "Come to Me", take us back to the eerie and wondrous soundscape.

At this point Fundacion has earned 4-5 stars for track selection, but what follows spoils the vibe just like Felix Da Housecat's "Watching the Cars Go By" did on Involver, except this time instead of one track it's EIGHT (yes 8, although to be fair I rather like "Behind the Wheel" and the last track "Don't Save Us From the Flames"). While these final eight tracks are mixed so skillfully, they replace a lush futuristic atmosphere/soundscape with funky, sometimes dull tracks that go for big baselines and a heavy rather than anything to capture you EMOTION, which has always been Sasha's trademark (as well as his mixing). Goldfrapp's "Strict Machine" is horrible; the beat (4/4 and too slow to dance to) sounds like someone bashing a wall with a sledgehammer. The last track offers some respite but by this time it's too late for any euphoria to set in.

In conclusion: a landmark in mixing, enjoyable to a point, and certainly not a waste of money. Involver fans should go for Northern Exposure (Vol. 1 & Vol. 2: East are the best ones to start on) or Airdrawndagger instead, all top-quality releases and far more chilled. I'd recommend listening to the last half of Fundacion if you're unsure of buying as this is the part you're most likely not to like. Still, most Sasha fans will be able to appreciate this little club/house experiment, as the pros weigh out the cons. 3 stars for track selection and hands-down 5 star mixing.

The only reason I did not give this album 5 stars was that it was not quite as danceable as the parties in the club. A great album to have: The disc starts off fairly dramatically with computers talking and such. As the beat begins ever so gently, we're taken into "Four Squares". Having been to 3 Fundacion parties thus far in NYC & Philly, I can tell the Maven is going to work already. The mix is melodic and it is layered with a high level of complexity. "Another Way" brings a hammered key melody that's very whimsical and dreamy. There is an electro-type breakdown with some distant vocals that flows back into a heavier 4-4 beat. This song has a new school- dirty electro melody coupled with the hammered melody from earlier on. The beauty of Sasha's machine is clear. Elements of the first song continue on 5 minutes into the second. On into "Tides" There is a great delay effect that flows directly into Bajka's vocals, also delayed with precision timing. The ever-evolving mix carries on into "Innocent Thoughts", with a harder snare and a more piercing melody.
Not long until we're onto the next track, "All That Matters", with it's fantastic bass line and cool edits. One minute later, we're on into "One, Two, Three". It's dreamy, maintaining the previous bass line in the distance. More cool edits and sounds attend the segue into the quirky "99 & a Half". The drawn out synths accompany a recurring bell melody along with the outbreak of occasional old school video game sounds. 99.5 then breaks into a driving progressive saw like bass line accented with very housy snares and kicks. Back to the bell melody and into "Come to Me (Last Version). Some great synth work here along with the bell melody still holding on. All types of glitchy shearing sounds emerging as I observed @ the Parties in NYC. They are joined by a deep dark bass line. Heavenly Vocals become stuttered and a new snare fades in. Creeping synths lead us into the club mix of "Come To Me". Haunting melodies now invade the soundscape and a marching beat begins to emerge while a bouncy bass line brings the sound into full swing. The computeresque eerie melody is driving and creepy. The extended mix continues along with some great vocal edits. The bouncing melody is then accompanied by a low end, fat bass line. Twinkling notes dash about at random as this ever changing mix gets more and more deep and complex. The mix itself is full of buildups and breakdowns, truly exposing Sasha's freedom with the Maven.
Back to the mix:
"Jah" breaks into the mix with bubbling bass and flanged snares. Stuttered synths lead into more 4-4 goodness. Progressive synths filter on and off building in intensity and break into a fluid bass line. As I'm typing, I didn't even realize that I'm now into "Behind the Wheel". The melody is very familiar due to my frequenting the parties in NYC & Philly. "Behind The Wheel" now winding down, the simplicity returns. A new quirky bass line returns with Tiefschwaz's Dub of "Electromagnetic". Very electro, very good. He's beginning to re-layer, with great care. Sporadic bongos and electronic guitar and laser sounds barrage the listener. A great breakdown is followed by a re-edited version of the melody. Back into "One, Two, Three" Briefly before jumping into James Holden's "Safari" Really groovy, with some wicked electronic maracas. Glitchy goodness returns again as the layers build. Eerie vocal edits lead into a stabby bass line and some more freaky samples. More vocal edits stutter into a grooving 4-4 and we're on our way to "Backlight Fantasy" a good two minutes before the song technically begins, according to the track times. As Backlight begins, you get that peak hours slammin goodness. It won't be long now before you're jumping up and down in your cubicle like I am. It's only going to get better from here. "Strict Machine" begins with a slamming kick and snare, as anticipated. Distorted synths all around. More guitar synths and a hard rock feel really get the foot tapping. The bass line is orgasmic. Syncopated hi hats just add to growing urge to get up and dance in my office. Enter stage right: Some more eerie vocals in the breakdown, and the guitar is filtered to the dirtiest possible setting. On our way to "Don't Save Us From the Flames" and we're marching along kick snare kick snare. Mellow vocals are moved along with the whole electro package: dirty bass line, kick and extended high-pitched snare. I'm speechless. BUY THIS ALBUM!!!

I didn't like this set when I first heard it, I thought it lacked emotion and the epic moments that made involver so good. But then I realized, I'm not supposed to be listening to this like involver. Fundacion is perhaps on the opposite end of the spectrum from involver. You must dance to this album in order to understand it and once I did see it, I can say that every aspect this album does take on, it does in fact do better than involver. I believe fundacion has the missing elements that involver lacked. Someone said this album sounds like sasha is practicing, which is prolly not far from the truth. I think he is trying to perfect the style presented in this album, so he can then take it back to the studio with him, combine it with the involver style and produce something better than either. I think the best is still yet to come.

This album is not very accesible, but if your someone that often gets into inaccesible music, you will enjoy this alot. The track selection, although weird, creates the most well rounded and accurate feeling of moods as it progresses. It opens, catches you, carries it, and closes it off in a very satisfying matter with nothing seeming out of place. In fact the track selection and arrangement is so good in the mood and tone of the songs, you can barely tell seperate songs apart, it just feels so correct and natural. In this regard I think the track selection is groundbreaking, better than Involver and any of Armin's work. When you get into this album it feels amazingly solid, organic and natural. All the tracks work off each other to create something awesome and none could really work by themselves, I have not heard an album so far that does this to the degree which Fundacion does it. But this completely smooth, organic feel is also where the greatest flaw of the album comes from, there is no UNKLE- In a state or Lostep - Burma. No tracks really highlight themselves and pull you into a new place. The whole album just remains perfectly in the background. But it does that with amazing precision and accuracy, more so than any of Sasha's previous, which definanetly shows that Sasha is progressing in his abilities.

Fans of 'Ibiza' be warned. This is not the breezy background music to your summer BBQ, unless you've been up for three days and the only thing cooking is not something we can really talk about here. 'Ibiza' is to dance music what Miles Davis' 'Kind of Blue' is to jazz - a perfect snapshot of a moment in time that's not likely to be repeated, particularly by the artist himself. Like Miles, Sasha's fame comes in part from his restlessness. He's somehow managed to balance the demands of headliner status with a willingness to push his sound forward to the point where he's clearly unafraid to alienate those who'd happily hear him churn out 'Ibiza' (or 'San Francisco', or 'Northen Exposure ') indefinately. Former fans aren't the only ones being abandoned. Sasha's apparently ditched the decks all together for technology that allows him to pull off on-the-fly multitrack mixing. Would the average Global Underground listener notice? Probably not, I'm guessing. For this new, seamless sound is mostly a droney, micro-house electro throb. You'll be too busy scratching your head to wonder that so many tracks can be mashed up to create what is, at times, a somewhat samey sound. Ironically, much like Involver, the set peaks with something that's as much rock as it is dance - the drum and guitars that grind in and out of Goldfrapp's Strict Machine. What proceeds it wavers from the intriguing (Holden & Thompson's eerie Come To Me) to the underwhelming (an electroclash cover of Depeche Mode's Behind The Wheel does not, to these ears, sound like a compelling case for Sasha's new mix toys). Strict Machine does leave me feeling that Sasha should tackle something that's guitar/rock based from start to finish. Unlike previous outings where tracks were apparently slected, resequenced and agonised over for months prior to compiling, Fundacion was apparently knocked out in a few days. Perhaps this is punk rock Sasha style. Fast, dirty and of the moment. Respect is due for for confounding all expectations. This is an interesting and at htimes abrasive headphone ride. But like a lot of listeners here, my reaction at the moment is a little "meh".

Sasha's FUNDACION mix was released to showcase some of the sounds characteristic of his eponymous recent club night in New York City. As many have commented, it departs widely from his earlier work, but I found it quite satisfying.

First some background on your reviewer. I stopped listening to progressive dance music several years ago when, feeling a little tired of the club scene and looking for music more unpredictable and rich, I started listening to post-war classical music such as Boulez, Gubaidulina, Lindberg, and so forth. Only recently have I started catching up with the old dance scene, and see that various stylistic changes have occured which suggest that many DJs are growing older just like myself. The shift to electro suggests an interest in something more cerebral instead of youthful emotion, and now that I look back, the shift to progressive around 1999 can be seen in much the same light. If you are still feeling youthful enough to dig a sweaty, energetic dancefloor-oriented style, there are other DJs you're bound to like at the moment, and that probably explains the mixed reviews of the album. For those like me, however--and I can't imagine that I'm alone in my tastes--there's a real need for something radically new within the dance music scene.

So here Sasha presents us with a new series of tunes compiled entirely with his MAVEN computer system, at the heart of which is the Ableton Live music sequencer software. "Series" isn't quite an appropriate word, because this technology allows him to explore a "vertical" dimension of sound in addition to the "horizontal" flow of the mix. Several tracks can be heard at once with the system, and some tracks are rearranged. The general soundworld is that of electro and Swayzak-like tech house, but there are references to pop (especially toward the end) and allusions to the trance of the first NORTHERN EXPOSURE compilation. While there's a 4/4 beat and a bass drum and a hi-hat to make this fit into the house style, clearly considering the music with the mind is just as important as dancing. I'm not sure how much I can talk about individual portions of the music, since the layering of tracks with MAVEN, but especially fascinating moments are Swayzak's "Another Way (Richard Davies mix)", and the melange of sounds before Holden & Thompson's "Come To Me" and that track itself (in the form of two different remixes).

While this is all a pleasant surprise, FUNDACION does have a few weak points. MAVEN is a new technology, and Sasha clearly hasn't become entirely used to it yet. I can imagine a true comfort with it coming in future mixes. My second complaint concerns the packaging: there's not really any commentary here. It would have been nice to at least get some comments about the new technology here, as well as a graphical representation of the album's flow, showing what tracks are in the mix at any given minute. The CD is divided into 18 tracks, but trackpoints are fairly meaningless when so much is going on. But in spite of the album's imperfect nature, it shows that Sasha continues to push the envelope of dance music when some have given in to 1980s early-house nostalgia (Sander Kleinenberg, Danny Howells) or are just doing the same thing they've been doing without end for the last few years (Tiesto and that whole rotten trance bunch). I want to hear more of this MAVEN-inspired work, and am glad that I can come back to dance music without feeling like I've taken a step down from any other musical style.

Maybe it's because I'm a dj still clinging to vinyl that I write this review, but I say that Sasha's best mix, and imo, the best live mix to date was GU Ibiza. Every time I listen to that album, I wish more than anything that I could have been there. With this album, I don't find myself yearning to go to the NY club scene, but rather wonder where the energy from dance music has gone. Sure, it's superbly blended as most reviewers have noted, but, djing isn't just blending tracks. I suppose, I am scared that this represents the possibility that soon, ALL djing can be done *perfectly* by computers, but that defeats the point of djing. The live experience is what makes it. My argument is, if it takes YEARS to learn vinyl, and anyone can change over to ableton in a year or less, how hard can it be? I prefer risk-taking, and the energy of a live performance. Sasha's computer shouldn't be the dj.

For those of you who like house, progressive, minimal techno, and light trance, you will definitely like this album. Sasha has been producing and creating "electronic" dance mixes for years, and once again he proves that he has quite an eclectic taste. Throughout this album, you can hear the different styles of dance music pervade through each track as well as the mixes. Sasha proves that he has been around dance music for quite some time, and no novice would ever think of stringing these tracks together. He is able to represent many of the different genres of electronic music and synthesize them into a whole. While many dj's fall into one category of music, such as house, trance, breakbeat, etc., Sasha refuses to allow this trend to happen to him.

Many club-goers assume that a studio-produced album should represent what the dj would normally play at the club. Their assumption leads them to be unhappy when they hear the studio-crafted mix. The reason this is so is because the dj knows that the mixes created at the club should inspire the people to dance and have fun. On the opposite end, a studio album should should be enjoyable to listen to over and over again. The dj knows that when the listener puts that cd into their cd player, they are not expecting to dance every time they listen to it. This is why studio albums tend to be more technical and downbeat compared to the normal club mix.

For those who have left a negative critique of this album, I think you missed the beauty of this album.

I'm a huge Sasha fan, so I ordered this album as soon as I learned of its existence. I found it to be a mixed bag, great by most standards, but somewhat plain compared to Sasha's other work. A few pro's and cons:

Pros:
-The introduction to this disc ("Rise of the Machine" by Badger) was very creative, and definitely added to the mystique and involved the listener. The "Sound Test" portion was quite cool as well.
-The album flows very well with very few hard, audible transitions. Whereas Involver was a well blended collection of tracks, this album is a true seamless mix.
-Track 4 "Tides" by Beanfield and Bajka is a wonderful track, and is almost worth the album
-Much thicker and more organic than Involver and Xpander, leading to a much more wordly sound.

Cons:
-There were several 1, 2 and 3 minute tracks, which were almost too short to really enjoy. The rapid-fire track switching occaisionally proved to be more distracting and fragmented than anything.
-Because of the very smooth mixing, individual tracks are very easily lost. Only a few of the tracks seemed to stand out from the flow of the mix itself.
-Very few of the tracks are remarkable enough for individual listening, and others are too short/blended to really make their full impact on their own.

Overall, this is a great mix CD, great for a 1.2 hour constant party. However, pulled into its component tracks, "Fundacion" suffers due to the steps taken to ensure a mix as seamless as it is. If you're looking for a sequel to "Involver", you'll likely not find it here, but you may well enjoy Fundacion in its own right!