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Gamma - PS 08/30 Release Date: 1 November 1993 Limitation: 500 Attuale 10.35 Katanga 20.04 Spirituale 21.26 Speltrum 10.28 Intellectuale 13.15 all tracks written by Massimo Vivona and Dr. Atmo except 4 by Massimo Vivona
Some of these early FAX discs really do sound dated and this is no exception. Basically up beat stuff that may move you or not. No, cant think of anything more to say about it, sorry.
(review by Rowland Atkinson)
Gamma is another early sublabel disc that's quite obscure. The notorious Dr. Atmo appears on this album, although I can't quite hear much of his influence. Maybe only the track lengths themselves are indicative of his presence.
"Attuale" is trance. Pure and simple. It's ten minutes of fast, repetitive trance. But it's not bad...it's pretty decent on headphones. It's got the typical early 90s Roland drum machine percussion and Base Line melodies. Pleasant, but not earth-shattering.
"Katanga" is a lengthy acid workout. The drums don't enter until about halfway through the song. It's got some recurring voice sample of some guy saying something like, "Ahn, ahn, gahn!" or whatever. This is a decent, sleek track, but it's not really distinct. This is definitely more IDM than trance.
"Spirituale" is a slower, leisurely-paced track. It's in the same vein as some Plastikman recordings (i.e., Musik) but without the overt 303 melodies. This is kind of moody, although it pretty much defines repetition, and is probably a bit too long. Buthey, this IS Dr. Atmo, right? Perhaps the album's best track.
"Speltrum" is a relatively shorter, trancier song. This track really reminds me of those computer demos made by the Future Crew around 1993-94. Same kind of hi-tech sound, albeit very generic.
The closer, "Intellectuale" is a more tranquil, spacey acid soundscape. It's more of the same no-name techno as the rest of the album.
Gamma is definitely a pleasant album. I like the tech moods and subdued percussion, which saves it from being an all-out trance assault. Like I said, I really don't hear much Dr. Atmo here. Maybe his influence slowed down the trance a bit (as compared with Massimo Vivona's other Fax album, Gorn). Nothing revelatory but good music nonetheless.
(review by Jonathan Osborne)
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