Adam Freeland Albums (8)
'Global Underground: Mexico City'
Release Date 5/22/2007
Tracks 33
Label Global Underground
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Few artists can claim to represent whole genres of electronic music, what with records being released at a breakneck pace by anyone with a home computer and sound card. Yet when the phrase nu-skool breaks comes into conversation, all heads turn to Adam Freeland. Perhaps Freeland's domination of the sound has part to do with his early instigation of the style that melded the warping bass of jungle with crafty techno bleeps, all while slowing down the breakbeat to a manageable tempo. Or perhaps it's because so few artist have really gotten over to the general public, which might actually be a result of Freeland's and a few other's (Rennie Pilgrem, Meat Katie, and Tayo) dominance. It's a chicken-or-the-egg debate. But the fact is, out of the 16 cuts on Freeland's mix for Fabric, exactly half feature the involvement of Freeland himself and Evil 9, perhaps the most active artists on Freeland's Marine Parade label. Although, while the roster might seem limited, the variety of tunes is anything but. Opening with the fizzing indie rock of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club might be stretching the boundaries just for the sake of stretching them, but Freeland and Evil 9's own work covers a variety of sounds, from the shocking 4/4 Kompakt-esque atmosphere of "Hired Goons" and "F-Groove" to the slower groove of "Burn the Clock," the only traditional nu-skool sound comes from PFN's "Flow" and the incredibly brief "Xylophone" by Precision Cuts. The rest of the time, Freeland grabs from multiple bins, including the classic bleep sound of LFO, to his own attempt at his ancestral drum'n'bass, "Mindkiller." Such diversity is presumably something to strive for, although the mixing suffers as a result, usually segueing from one track to the next and missing out on the magical "third record" that can occur when a skilled DJ is on his game. It's made more frustrating by the fact that Freeland most likely could have blended several of these transitions if only he had applied himself. So while Freeland proves himself an excellent selector of tracks everyone should appreciate, he failed to go the extra mile to make this mix a stunner. ~ Joshua Glazer, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Just as the disparate styles in electronic dance began drifting, like continents, so far apart it seemed unlikely they'd ever be within hailing distance of each other again, one of Britain's brightest young DJs brought them all back into the fold. On Tectonics, Adam Freeland compiled a selection of tracks that hark to techno as much as trance, house as much as breakbeat, and made a fresh form out of the strengths of many different styles. Freeland simultaneously assimilates the mid-tempo breakbeats and analog paranoia of drum'n'bass, the streamlined flair and elegance of progressive trance, and the edge and hardness of techno, with delicious, refreshing results. Many of the tracks are associated with Britain's growing tech-house movement, with Freeland compatriots like Layo & Bushwacka, Kevin Beber, and ILS making appearances. (Freeland himself comprises half of Tsunami One, whose "Hip Hop Phenomenon" collaboration with BT is included here). Just as the dozens of dance styles out there began getting codified (and stale), Freeland took the best parts of each and produced one of the year's brightest mix albums. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
'Coastal Breaks, Vol. 2'
Release Date 7/21/1998
Tracks 15
Label Xtreme Entertainment
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
As most music scenes do, dance music has become horribly and irrevocably Balkanized over the past 15 years. House, breakbeat, jungle, and techno have all splintered into numerous subgenres, and those subgenres have split again and again, until the styles have become so numerous and the distinctions between them so minute that only the most obsessive can keep track of them. And the exponents of each subgenre dig themselves into musical grooves that get deeper and narrower with every passing weekend. That's what makes Adam Freeland such a breath of fresh air. Though he comes from the general tradition of breakbeat, he spins a wide variety of music and worries less about showing off his beat-matching virtuosity than he does about keeping his audiences engaged both in mind and at the level of the hips. His two-disc contribution to the Global Underground series is a perfect example of his kitchen-sink approach: you've got your '80s-style electro-pop (Mylo's "Paris 400 (As We Fall Remix)," KIM's "Wet 'n' Wild (Midnight Juggernaughts Mix)"), your blockheaded breaks (Justice's "Phantom"), your glitchy micro-funk ("Lump" by James Holden). And, Freeland being Freeland, you get some actual songs thrown in for good measure -- the best of them being Silverspun Pickups' brittle yet tuneful "Lazy Eye." You've got a few overlong and underdeveloped stretches of utilitarian club beats as well, but you get the feeling that that's just to make sure the album gets put in the right bin. Strongly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
