Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1

Last updated
Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1
Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1.jpg
Compilation album by
Juan Atkins
Released1998
Genre Techno, Detroit techno
Label Wax Trax!
Juan Atkins chronology
Skynet
(1998)		Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1
(1998)		Mind and Body
(1999)

Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1 is a compilation album mixed by the American musician Juan Atkins, released in 1998. [1] [2] It was the first in a series of DJ mixes released by Wax Trax! Records. [3] Atkins supported the album by participating in the MasterMix tour. [4]

Contents

Production

The album was mixed live by Atkins, who contributed four of his own tracks: "No UFOs", "Game One", "Skyway", and "Starlight". [5] [6] "Sharevari", by the musicians A Number of Names, is sometimes considered to be the first techno song. [5] "Sex on the Beach", by DJ Assault, is an early example of ghettotech, a style of music that also originated in Detroit. [7] "Nude Photo" is the first record released by Atkins's fellow Detroit musician Derrick May. [8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [9]
Robert Christgau Rating-Christgau-dud.svg [10]
Entertainment Weekly A− [11]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [12]
Spin 7/10 [13]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [14]

The Chicago Tribune noted that "the album's intent seems to be much less high-minded, serving simply as a solid representation of Atkins' propulsive live sets, which touch on techno classics, foreign manifestations and prime second- wave Motor City cuts". [5] The Detroit Free Press stated, "Even with the mix of old and new material from Atkins and other artists, Atkins glides through the 19 tracks so effortlessly, it makes it difficult to have a complete grasp on the end of one song and the beginning of another. Techno-heads will probably hail MasterMix as a DJ's masterpiece, but newcomers may find it monotonous." [15]

Rolling Stone said that the compilation "works as a pocket history of Motor City microchip music, explicitly admitting techno's evolution from Seventies European disco." [16] The Orange County Register listed the compilation among the best examples of Detroit techno. [17] The Washington Post concluded that many tracks "showcase Detroit techno's accomplishment: endowing Kraftwerk's mechanical beats with the suppleness of a live funk band." [6] Entertainment Weekly called the album "a beautiful, warts-and-all set of genre classics." [11] LA Weekly listed Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1 as the ninth best "pop" album of 1998. [18]

In 2011, Spin included Wax Trax! MasterMix Volume 1 on its list of "essential" Detroit techno albums. [8] AllMusic concluded that "the mixing is much more raw than on a live Atkins date, perhaps a reaction to the dozens of seamless (read: overdubbed) mix albums already on the market." [9]

Track listing

No.TitleArtistLength
1."No UFOs" Model 500  
2."Nude Photo" Rhythim Is Rhythim  
3."Sharevari"A Number of Names 
4."Disco Circus" Martin Circus  
5."Lara's Theme"B.J. Robson 
6."Another Dae" Blaze  
7."Prime Time"Rick Wade 
8."Reborn"Walt J 
9."The Pace" Rob Hood  
10."Convextion (AA)"Convextion 
11."Nature of the Beast"Black Noise 
12."Their Voices" Pacou  
13."Game One" Infiniti  
14."Skyway"Infiniti 
15."Sex on the Beach" DJ Assault  
16."Inhibitions (Clear Horizons Mix)"Belizbeha 
17."7"Maurizio 
18."Starlight"Model 500 
19."Klum" Mr. Oizo  

References

  1. ↑ Benedict, David (January 2, 1999). "Wax Trax! Mastermix Vol 1". Melody Maker. Vol. 75, no. 53. p. 38.
  2. ↑ Khedoori, Andrew (April 7, 2000). "Juan of a kind". Metro. The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 21.
  3. ↑ Rayner, Ben (March 27, 1999). "Wax Trax! MasterMix Vol. 2". Entertainment. Toronto Star. p. 1.
  4. ↑ Paoletta, Michael (June 19, 1999). "Master of the Mix". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 25. p. 35.
  5. 1 2 3 Roth, Jason (January 3, 1999). "Recordings". Arts & Entertainment. Chicago Tribune. p. 3.
  6. 1 2 Jenkins, Mark (August 4, 1999). "Electronica: Four Leaders of the Pack". The Washington Post. p. C5.
  7. ↑ "The Scene Is Now: Motor Booty". CMJ New Music Monthly. No. 88. December 2000. p. 75.
  8. 1 2 Eddy, Chuck (October 2011). "Essentials". Spin. Vol. 27, no. 9. p. 80.
  9. 1 2 "Wax Trax! Mastermix, Vol. 1 Review by John Bush". AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Juan Atkins". Robert Christgau. Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  11. 1 2 Hermes, Will (January 15, 1999). "Pop/Rock". Entertainment Weekly. No. 467. p. 63.
  12. ↑ (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 27.
  13. ↑ Michaels, Rob (January 1999). "Reviews". Spin. Vol. 15, no. 1. pp. 121–122.
  14. ↑ The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Virgin Books. 1999. p. 62.
  15. ↑ Pratt, Tim (January 31, 1999). "Detroit Disc". Detroit Free Press. p. F4.
  16. ↑ Eddy, Chuck (February 4, 1999). "Wax Trax! Mastermix Volume 1 / I Sing the Body Electro". Rolling Stone. No. 805. p. 61.
  17. ↑ Darling, Cary. "Best of Motor City techno". Orange County Register. p. F50.
  18. ↑ Burk, Greg (January 14, 1999). "Music 1998". LA Weekly. p. 46.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.