Mark Jenkins If the World Were Turned On Its Head... Play Sample:   56K Dialup   Broadband   Download Sample:   500K   1.5Mb (Excerpt from track(s) 'I Have Known the Void')

Immediately you press the play button a cacophony of exciting crashing sounds assaults the senses. There is no drifty introduction here as the title track immediately follows this up with a rapid sequence and meandering lead line. The intense backing suddenly disappears and another good sequence replaced the first. Things are now less frantic and more melodic but we are still chugging along at quite a pace. A little later a rhythm is added and the melody seems to gain extra oomph. The sequence starts to morph wonderfully. This really is a track full of movement and ideas.

By the tenth minute things calm down to lovely atmospheric sounds and excellent bleepy sci fi type effects. These are just like a dividing moment however, after which the next sequence and searing sonic blast are introduced. Yet another sequence falls into place alongside the first then in comes another crashing drum line which once again increases the excitement level. There is a short break in the syncopations but then the rhythm and sequence start up again, the lead line being even better than before, flashing like a laser rebounding from mirror to mirror. Excellent stuff. Things gradually calm down to pure atmospherics with five minutes to go but as expected this is just a prelude to a final rhythmic / sequencer driven assault. Lead lines let rip once more, ideal for air keyboard playing, as we bounce along in a wonderful head nodding and foot-tapping groove.

Clangs, as if big metal doors are being swung shut from somewhere deep down underground provide a rather dark start to 'I Have Known The Void'. Organ sounds keep up the Underworldish type feel. The mood lightens in the fourth minute but things are still fairly abstract until a slow rhythm starts up a couple of minutes later. It then starts to increase in pace and an inevitable sequence comes to join it contributing to the slow build up. This might sound like fairly formula stuff from my description but there is also some individuality here especially in the sounds chosen and interesting use of backing effects.