Decks FX And 909

Alternative Press - 4 out of 5 - "...hits a primal and powerful groove with a style and originality. Yes, the Force still walks among the dancefloor, thanks to Richie." The Wire - "...the source of the music's interest resides in the reductionist processes of stripping it down to bare rippling pulses....it has something to do with the acceleration of the pulse that results from squeezing 38 tracks into a 60 minute set..." CMJ - "...a jaw-dropping 38 tracks over the course of a ferocious, hour-long mix....a prime example of the intensity that can erupt when one man takes the stage with a crate of vinyl, some techno gear, and a surplus of ingenuity at his disposal." Magnet - "...the DJ's highly evolved sense of electronic music encompasses DECKS: turntable prowess, effects mastery and the Roland TR909 techno drumkit....rapture-inducing dancefloor offering..." Alternative Press - Included in AP's "10 Essential DJ-Mix Albums" Spin - 7 out of 10 - "...an organically mutating beast [created] in his own image. There is a fiendish, bipolar dynamism here..." Q - 3 stars out of 5 - "...seamless 38 tracks, continously ebbing, flowing and overlapping. Beats recede then suddenly burst back upfront, hiking up to a higher plateau, peppered with stuttering repeats and dropped-in vocal snatches..."

Decks, EFX & 909 is the next step for Richie Hawtin after his Mixmag live album from 1995 and the increasing minimalism of his subsequent Plastikman material (the Consumed LP). Hawtin displays not only his talents as a mixer but also as a producer, using turntables, an effects processor, and a Roland pedal, plus a TR-909 drum machine for added beats. An extension of his live sets (though not entirely recorded live), the album employs a degree of improvisation rarely heard on mix albums. Cycling through 38 tracks in just over an hour, Hawtin ranges through driving, minimalist techno with inclusions from Richard Harvey, Jeff Mills, Surgeon, Pacou, Heiko Laux, Vladislav Delay, Maurizio, Rhythm & Sound, Marco Carola, and a few of his own tracks. The result of Hawtin's obvious labor of love is a mix album that manages to be simultaneously intense and moody, pummeling yet restrained. The beats are clipped and precise, rarely deviating from a 120 BPM pace. Though fans might resent the fact that it wasn't recorded live, Decks, EFX & 909 simply couldn't have been done well in a live setting -- at times, Hawtin has four records spinning at once, and the layers of sound he adds to the show make this album a highly effective techno statement. Another devastating release from North America's most effective dancefloor experimentalist. ~ John Bush|

Decks, EFX & 909 is the next step for Richie Hawtin after his Mixmag live album from 1995 and the increasing minimalism of his subsequent Plastikman material (the Consumed LP). Hawtin displays not only his talents as a mixer but also as a producer, using turntables, an effects processor, and a Roland pedal, plus a TR-909 drum machine for added beats. An extension of his live sets (though not entirely recorded live), the album employs a degree of improvisation rarely heard on mix albums. Cycling through 38 tracks in just over an hour, Hawtin ranges through driving, minimalist techno with inclusions from Richard Harvey, Jeff Mills, Surgeon, Pacou, Heiko Laux, Vladislav Delay, Maurizio, Rhythm & Sound, Marco Carola, and a few of his own tracks. The result of Hawtin's obvious labor of love is a mix album that manages to be simultaneously intense and moody, pummeling yet restrained. The beats are clipped and precise, rarely deviating from a 120 BPM pace. Though fans might resent the fact that it wasn't recorded live, Decks, EFX & 909 simply couldn't have been done well in a live setting -- at times, Hawtin has four records spinning at once, and the layers of sound he adds to the show make this album a highly effective techno statement. Another devastating release from North America's most effective dancefloor experimentalist. ~ John Bush