Environ mark the 20th birthday of Metro Area's exceptional eponymous debut with this great reissue. Meticulously remastered using the original source tapes and generously spread across three slabs of vinyl, this is a welcome chance to grab a copy of one of the finest albums in dance music history.
In the late nineties, the budding producers Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani bonded over their shared love of slower tempos and '70s and '80s NYC club culture. Obsessed with record digging and the sounds they heard on late-night club classics radio shows - and turned off by current releases they saw as artlessly updating sublime disco by sampling, filtering and subjugating them with huge kick drums - the duo set out to discover how their favorite old 12" records were made. They naturally gravitated towards extended dubs of songs - full of strange mistakes and echoing backing tracks - instead of the better-known vocal versions. Lacking the big budgets and gear that made so many of their favorite classic records come together, they were forced to take a guerrilla approach. They reprogrammed their techno-oriented arsenal of secondhand synths and samplers, using novel digital recording technology to capture live instrumentation and prioritizing mood over hooks, and the resulting music was just wrong enough to sound unlike anything else being released at the time.
After four essential 12" releases, the duo released their first and only album, "Metro Area", in the autumn of 2002. twenty years later, it's time to celebrate the culmination of their shared history and inspiration once again.
In the late nineties, the budding producers Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani bonded over their shared love of slower tempos and '70s and '80s NYC club culture. Obsessed with record digging and the sounds they heard on late-night club classics radio shows - and turned off by current releases they saw as artlessly updating sublime disco by sampling, filtering and subjugating them with huge kick drums - the duo set out to discover how their favorite old 12" records were made. They naturally gravitated towards extended dubs of songs - full of strange mistakes and echoing backing tracks - instead of the better-known vocal versions. Lacking the big budgets and gear that made so many of their favorite classic records come together, they were forced to take a guerrilla approach. They reprogrammed their techno-oriented arsenal of secondhand synths and samplers, using novel digital recording technology to capture live instrumentation and prioritizing mood over hooks, and the resulting music was just wrong enough to sound unlike anything else being released at the time.
After four essential 12" releases, the duo released their first and only album, "Metro Area", in the autumn of 2002. twenty years later, it's time to celebrate the culmination of their shared history and inspiration once again.
STAFF COMMENTS
Matt says: Though it may be 20 years old (scary right!), the music on Metro Area's remarkable debut is just a vital as ever. Refined drum programming, spacious arrangements, neat hooks and nocturnal moods, all brought together into the warmest, grooviest house music you could ever hope for. It always reminded me of Brooklyn on a warm, sweaty late afternoon, even though I've never been there! :PTRACK LISTING
A1. Dance Reaction
A2. Piña
B1. Caught Up
B2. Evidence
C1. Miura
C2. Soft Hoop
D1. Orange Alert
D2. Square-Pattern Aura
E1. Atmosphrique
E2. Machine Vibes
F1. Strut
F2. Let's Get...