Ride the Lightning is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on July 27, 1984, by the independent record label Megaforce Records. The album was recorded in three weeks with producer Flemming Rasmussen at the Sweet Silence Studios in Copenhagen, Denmark. The artwork, based on a concept by the band, depicts an electric chair being struck by lightning flowing from the band logo. The title was taken from a passage in Stephen King's novel The Stand. Although rooted in the thrash metal genre, the album showcased the band's musical growth and lyrical sophistication. This was partly because bassist Cliff Burton introduced the basics of music theory to the rest of the band and had more input in the songwriting. Instead of relying heavily on fast tempos as on its debut Kill 'Em All, Metallica broadened its approach by employing acoustic guitars, extended instrumentals, and more complex harmonies. The overall recording costs were paid by Metallica's European label Music for Nations because Megaforce was unable to cover it. It is the last album to feature songwriting contributions from former lead guitarist Dave Mustaine, and the first to feature contributions from his replacement, Kirk Hammett. At 47 minutes, it is Metallica's shortest studio album.
Beaucoup Fish is the fifth album by Underworld, released in 1999. Following the huge success of the single "Born Slippy .NUXX" from its use in the film Trainspotting, Beaucoup Fish was Underworld's most anticipated release. It spawned several successful singles, including "Push Upstairs", "Jumbo" and "Moaner", which was previously used in the film Batman & Robin.
Skam Records is an independent electronic music record label based in Manchester, England, founded by Andy Maddocks around 1990. Skam also runs a smaller sub-label called 33.
Underground Resistance are a musical collective from Detroit, Michigan. Producing primarily Detroit techno since 1990 with a grungy four-track musical aesthetic, they are also renowned for their militant political and anti-corporate ethos.
Basic Channel is a German music duo and record label, composed of Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus, that originated in Berlin in 1993. The duo have also worked under other names, including Rhythm & Sound and Maurizio, and have founded offshoot label imprints such as Chain Reaction and Main Street. Their work in the 1990s is regarded as pioneering the minimal and dub techno subgenres.
Minimal techno is a minimalist subgenre of techno music. It is characterized by a stripped-down aesthetic that exploits the use of repetition and understated development. Minimal techno is thought to have been originally developed in the early 1990s by Detroit-based producers Robert Hood and Daniel Bell. By the early 2000s the term 'minimal' generally described a style of techno that was popularised in Germany by labels such as Kompakt, Perlon, Boris Brejcha and Richie Hawtin's M-nus, among others.
Black Secret Technology is the fourth album by UK electronic producer A Guy Called Gerald, released in February 1995 to widespread critical acclaim. It has since been described as the best jungle album of all-time by publications such as Fact, Pitchfork and Freaky Trigger.
Robert Hood is an American electronic music producer and DJ. He is a founding member of group Underground Resistance as a 'Minister Of Information' with Mad Mike Banks and Jeff Mills. He is often considered to be one of the founders of minimal techno. In 1994, Hood founded the minimal techno label M-Plant in Detroit.
Regis is a British techno musician and record label owner.
Gas is the main musical project of German electronic musician and composer Wolfgang Voigt. The project was created as an expressive medium inspired by his experiences with taking LSD in the Königsforst, a German forest situated near his hometown of Cologne, for long periods in his youth. He has claimed that the intention of the project is to "bring the forest to the disco, or vice-versa".
Returnal is the fourth studio album by American electronic musician Daniel Lopatin under the alias Oneohtrix Point Never, released on June 22, 2010 by Mego Records. It develops the synthesizer-based compositions of Lopatin's previous work, while also incorporating elements of noise music and his own processed vocals. The album received positive reviews from critics, and was named among the best albums of 2010 by several publications, including FACT, The Wire, and Tiny Mix Tapes.
Internal Empire is an album by American electronic musician Robert Hood. It was released in 1994 through Tresor, as a follow-up to Minimal Nation, released in the same year. The album showcases a further development on Hood's minimal sound, as well as departure from his collaborations with Underground Resistance. Alongside Minimal Nation, the album is cited as one of the important works in minimal techno genre.
Waveform Transmission Vol. 2 is an album by American electronic musician and record producer Robert Hood, released under the alias The Vision. Issued in 1993 via Tresor record label, it is the second instalment of the Waveform Transmission series. Featuring a different style from Hood's future releases, the record attributes influences to his collective Underground Resistance and Jeff Mills.
Break Stuff is a studio album by American jazz musician Vijay Iyer. It was released in February 2015 under ECM Records.
JK Flesh is a moniker of English musician Justin Broadrick employed for his solo work within electronic music. Broadrick's usage of the title spans back to his work in the 1990s with Kevin Martin in Techno Animal, but he first released a solo studio album as JK Flesh in 2012. Unlike Broadrick's most well-known projects, Godflesh and Jesu, his work as JK Flesh is electronic and lacks metal riffs. Over the years, the project has shifted into a more minimal and dub sound while retaining its industrial influences.
Drainland is the debut solo studio album by American musician Michael Gira. It was released on June 9, 1995 through Alternative Tentacles record label. Using spare arrangements recorded in August 1994 at musician Bill Rieflin's Seattle home, the album features contributions from Rieflin and Gira's Swans bandmate Jarboe.
The Face is the second extended play of British electronic music duo Disclosure, consisting of Guy and Howard Lawrence. It was released on 4 June 2012, by the Greco-Roman label, its remix EP, which features a re-cut of "Control" by Hot Chip's Joe Goddard, distributed in September 2012. The four-track record, which contains musical styles of balearic beat, UK garage, dubstep and techno, features vocal contributions from Sinéad Harnett and Ria Ritchie. It was described by one reviewer as more a "youthful" release of a dubstep and techno scene consisting of artists like James Blake and Little Dragon. The EP is a big departure from their previous works in terms of musical style, its few post-dubstep elements to be the only ones that were also present on their past releases. Promoted one single, "Boiling", and one music video for "Control", The Face garnered critical acclaim, major praises being towards the quality of the EP's musical style and song structures.
Marie Davidson is a French-Canadian electronic musician and producer from Montreal.
Biokinetics is the first album by the electronic music duo of Thomas Köner and Andy Mellwig known as Porter Ricks. Issued in 1996, it was the first release on the Berlin-based Chain Reaction label. It is considered a classic within the dub techno genre.
Nighttime World Volume 1 is an album by American electronic musician Robert Hood, released in 1995 on Cheap Records. Compared to his previous minimal techno work, the record features influences and elements from jazz, soul and downtempo. Its follow-up record, Nighttime World Volume 2, built upon the style of its predecessor and was released on Hood's M-Plant in 2000.
