Hack

Information Society | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 5, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B000002LLW
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #164,877 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars YES! YES! YES!, May 16, 2000

By 

"redjinx" (pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hack (Audio CD)

this is MY kinda music! all the sampling, sound-bytes, techno-make-you-wanna-dance music. keep it coming! it's 2000 and this is still one of my most listened to cds. keeps your ears busy - where DO the sound bytes come from? i think i recognize some star trek...

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Absurdly lovable overkill techno-pop., October 29, 2002

By 

Andy Williamson (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hack (Audio CD)

Would you expect any less from Information Society, a band that should more appropriately be named Information Overload? This was actually the first Info Soc. album I owned and I still enjoy the over-the-top samples and bizarre noises mixed in with pop sensability. The great tracks here include "How Long", "Knife & A Fork...", "Mirrorshades", "Come With Me", and "...T.V. Addicts". This album so exemplifies the late 80's early 90's techno/industrial/dance sound-even more so than much better known albums such as NIN's PRETTYHATEMACHINE. Not that Info Soc. is nearly as self-absorbed or nihilistic as NIN or MINISTRY-bands that have a much more prominent metal edge. Info Soc. is more about dancing and evoking images of Mike Myers Saturday Night Live "SPROCKETS" sketch with Deiter than anything else. And the album doesn't really 'flow' in the traditional sense. It is more of a collage of dance beats, melodies, and computer-aided sampling with a distinct KRAFTWERK and DEVO flair. Far from perfect, but quite interesting. It never quite breaks out of the 'coldness' that is inherant in techno/dance music. What saves the album is that it is fun to listen to; it's not a repetitive dance album like so many others and it's not filled with self-important 'life stinks' diatribes. Info Soc. seem to have grasped the idea that most people would rather have a catchy melody along with their dance beats, as opposed to a monolithic, lumbering assemblage of casio-keyboard-produced dance loops or walls of distorted guitar and loads of existential angst. Music is supposed to be FUN.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great CD, and it still sounds fresh, April 30, 2006

By 

GMOTSL "GMOTSL" (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hack (Audio CD)

If you start listening to Hack expecting it to be a continuation of the made-for-radio pop like the self-titled "Information Society" album, you'll probably be disappointed. "A Knife and a Fork" will leave you scratching your head, and you'll hit the stop button. But to do so will cause you to miss out on some excellent music.

"Hack" has several catchy, mainstream-safe tracks, notably "Think", "How Long", "Move Out" and "Slipping Away". But those tracks aren't front-loaded into the first four tracks on the CD... they're scattered between a variety of "experimental" tracks, some of which you'll like, and others you may find dull or annoying.

As an example, the track "Fire Tonight", has a light and happy tune. The lyrics, on the other hand, paint an eerie and dark picture of a city in chaos ("you said that if you couldn't take the car, you'd walk instead; it was the last thing you said before the line went dead; now I'm waiting by the window holding all the things of yours I've found"). The combination is rather unusual, technically interesting, and in my opinion, one of the best tracks on the CD.

The thing about these "experimental" tracks is that as a listener, you might not like them the first time you hear them, especially if you're looking for radio pop. However, they are also much less formulaic, so over the long haul, they still sound new compared to the radio.

If you liked "Think", give this CD a shot. There are enough solid pop tracks to be worthwhile, and if you give the rest of the CD a chance, you may grow to love the entire thing.