Various

Purveyors of out there electronic music and sounds, this is Iris Light's first compilation - way overdue for a label who can boast the likes of Aube on their roster. (Marconi Point, the home of Iris Light Records, is where the historical Marconi transmitted the first long distance radio frequencies.) An impressive array of artists are featured here, including Zoviet France and Muslimgauze, and the atmospheric stuff on this compilation is first rate. Ashfelt's "Mekanik" is quite creepy, with odd cinematic voiceovers mixed in with varying tone pitches, momentary rhythm breaks and deep drone throbs. Rapoon's "Lest We Forget" is awesome, deep and immersed with what sounds like hauntingly sustained and treated trumpet notes. The Muslimgauze track, "Trialmix," adheres to the usual standards of the late Bryn Jones. This time, sparse hand percussion sounds are joined by a chorus of rhythms, acquiring layers of intensity in the process. The last two tracks, Marineville's "Modus Operandi" and Filter Kween's "Ground Parrot," are avant drum & bass cuts, à la Squarepusher. This compilation of finely crafted sounds ought to be satisfying for both the casual listener and the connoisseur.