The Future Sound of London Albums (5)
What The Critics Say
Future Sound of London returned to active recording with The Isness, a record that trumpets a host of through-the-ages psychedelic influences, from the Beatles to Gong to mid-'70s Pink Floyd to Spacemen 3 to the Chemical Brothers. The opener, "Elysian Feels," has the back-masked strings of "Tomorrow Never Knows," a surprisingly AOR guitar solo, and a few Chemical Brothers breaks. "The Mello Hippo Disco Show" has a hippy vocal floating over a series of funereal chords and some Mellotron effects. It's clear that Garry Cobain and Brian Dougans are still great producers; check out "Osho," an excellent piece of light blaxploitation funk grafted onto film strings. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
'Dead Cities'
Release Date 1/1/1996
Tracks 15
Label Astralwerks/Virgin
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Dead Cities turned out to be the Future Sound of London's bow out from the spotlight -- at least, nothing further was released by them for the rest of the decade and well into the next one. Compared to the crisp approach of Accelerator and Lifeforms' disorienting, surprising exploration into ambient sound, Dead Cities finds the group trying out something new yet again. The theme of the album, thoroughly explored in the art (as always, created by the group itself), seems to be one of futuristic urban decay, almost as if reacting against the perceived otherwordliness of Lifeforms, calmer moments like the acoustic guitar shimmer of "Her Face Forms in Summertime" aside. Hints of cyberpunk fetishism and atmospheres are everywhere, combined with a generally darker sound track for track and more upfront beats on a number of songs. "My Kingdom," a spooky choice for the initial single, blends in low-pitched drones with the echoing shuffle of the main rhythm, suggesting a Japanese city set somewhere in the outback after all the world's power finally ran out. As a further touch, the overall Blade Runner feeling of Dead Cities is heightened even more via the sampling of Mary Hopkin's haunting, wordless vocals from that film's soundtrack. The collage approach that has served the band well over the years recurs time and again -- snippets from unreleased spoken word performances and reworked orchestrations float up and down in the mix, feeling like an unusual sonic tour. That said, two of the strongest moments on Dead Cities -- the amazing single "We Have Explosive" and its semi-remix "Herd Killing," which starts the album -- come from the same source, namely Run-DMC. The brutal guitar stab and accompanying wah-wah and shout, which define both tracks, come from the Tougher Than Leather album, here reshuffled into a brusque, memorable punch with a killer, buzzing bassline. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
While webcast concerts and performances swiftly became commonplace by the end of the 1990s, there had to be pioneers somewhere in earlier years, and FSOL was among them. Instead of touring for the Lifeforms album in 1994, they instead set up a series of appearances on a variety of radio stations, as well as concert dates involving broadcasting to specific venues. ISDN, named after the high-speed connection that made these ventures possible, compiles a variety of cuts from four different sessions, including one with Robert Fripp. All four were live performances, with only new material appearing on ISDN itself, making it a fine standalone collection of intrinsic value beyond its gee-whiz factor. While not a cohesive listen like Lifeforms by default -- the selections aren't organized in chronological fashion -- all are edited together to provide a reasonable enough simulation of a standalone performance. Stylistically the duo explore both the experimental reaches of Lifeforms' unsettling ambient approach and the rougher sounds which would come to dominate on Dead Cities. "The Far Out Son of Lung and the Ramblings of a Madman" makes for a great taste of the latter, with a steady, aggressive hip-hop loop mixed with muted jazz trumpet and cascading, unnerving synth swirls and sighs, not to mention sudden guitar stabs. Similarly aggro efforts appear, like the steady, booming breakbeat echo and intense synth bassline on "Slider." On the calmer but no less intriguing side, standouts include "Just a Fuckin' Idiot" and especially "Dirty Shadows," subtle and threatening in atmosphere, resembling a spooked-out In the Nursery track. Besides Fripp, there's one other guest on the album -- sort of: John Williams gets some of his acoustic bass work sampled for a core loop on "Smokin Japanese Babe," which predates the commercial explosion of trip-hop by mere months. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Having indulged in more explicitly ambient realms with the Amorphous Androgynous side project, FSOL returned to full action with Lifeforms, a double-disc effort that ranks as one of the best experimental techno releases of the '90s. If not as immediately memorable on a song per song basis as, say, Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works collections, as an overall piece, Lifeforms makes for an inventive, fascinating aural experience, as rich and detailed as the Orb's best work. Where FSOL differs from that band in particular is the comparative lack of overt humor and less immediate desire to make people groove -- this is something to listen to rather than necessarily dance to. In comparison to Accelerator, this is an extremely subtle listen, with rhythms generally buried in the mix, serving the melodies rather than vice versa. In comparison to the upfront breaks and steady house beats just two years previous, here they're stuttered, echoed, often approaching dub in pace and impact. Meanwhile, the space-alien bubbles and noises and haunting tones take to the fore, making for a disorienting, evocative experience, a mix of natural sounds and artificial elements much like the band's own artwork. Even the singles, "Cascade" and "Lifeforms," play down the beat. The one for "Cascade" is barely there, swooping samples and soft synth hooks to the fore, while "Lifeforms," for its comparatively more direct impact, relies as much on its keyboard swell and chiming melody as much as the complex overlay of rhythms. There are a few guest appearances here and there, but they're mostly notable for how the band incorporate them instead of letting them stand out -- Robert Fripp's guitar on "Flak," Talvin Singh's tablas on "Life Form Ends," and Toni Halliday from Curve doing a "vocal texture" on "Cerebral." ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
'Accelerator'
Release Date 1/1/1991
Tracks 10
Label Jumpin' & Pumpin'
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Compared to where most of the band's career would later go, Accelerator is a fairly conventional debut from the duo -- certainly it's the most explicitly commercial-minded the duo ever was, slotting in well with many other early-'90s U.K. dance/techno outfits. As such it's also arguably the least cryptic and most approachable release for newcomers, holding up well a decade after its original appearance. Rather than focusing on ambient experimentalism or industrial noise destruction, here Future Sound of London sound like a straightforward if at times inspired act, whose tendencies to push the envelope are secondary to keeping the beat going. The main reason to listen remains its awesome single "Papua New Guinea," blending a treated vocal sample from Dead Can Dance's Lisa Gerrard with a slightly sped-up James Brown drum loop and other, more shadowy touches like echoed piano. The result combines exaltation, energy, and atmosphere into a dramatic result, as danceable as it is subtly threatening. At various points on Accelerator, FSOL show an inspired focus on breakbeats as much as acid pulses; while nowhere near as frenetic as other early hardcore/jungle creations, the music clearly leans towards those records in inspiration. "Expander," which also appears in a remix at the end, makes for a good start for the album along those lines, while "Central Industrial" plays around with more distorted rhythms. At other points FSOL follows in more conventional veins -- "Stolen Documents" is practically an early 808 State track in all but name -- while throwing in odd noises and background quirks which in later years would dominate their own compositions. "It's Not My Problem" in particular is a fun little creepout, a flat semi-robot voice declaiming the title as needed while buried synths create a darker mood amidst the regular beat and additional, echoed percussion hits. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
