Environ US レコード& CD

Review: To mark the passing of three decades since he established the now iconic Environ imprint, Morgan Geist has decided to reissue the label's long-deleted debut 12" - a solo EP that was just his second release. At the time, Geist had yet to develop the disco-leaning but naturally synth-heavy trademark sound he's become renowned for. Instead, he was investigating the stargazing potential of Detroit-influenced techno and jacking-but-spacey house. Check first the lightly bleep techno influenced excellence of 'Sands' and the more driving, upbeat and jacking 'Airpour', before diving deeply into the percussively rich deep techno wonder of 'Smear'. To complete the package, we get a suitably cosmic, pitched down ambient techno revision of the same track by The Connection Machine - back then a duo who had just released a fine EP on Planet E.

Review: It might be 23 years old, but Metro Area's second eponymous EP still sounds as fresh, timeless and immaculately produced as it did at the turn of the Millennium. Here the three-tracker returns in freshly remastered form. The real standout is arguably near nine-minute A-side 'The Art Of Hot', a deliciously deep, sparse and glassy-eyed affair in which echoing strings (courtesy of Kelley Polar and chums), sustained chords and electronic pots-and-pans percussion rise above an undulating synth bassline and crispy disco drums. Elsewhere, 'Machine Vibes' is a more warming and melody-rich skip through deep nu-disco pastures featuring a rather lovely flute solo, and 'Wafer' is a bass guitar-propelled skip through spacey, house-not-house awesomeness.

Review: Has there ever been a more significant nu-disco release than Metro Area's 1999 debut? It was certainly an outlier on its original release in 1999 and inspired countless others to attempt (and usually fail) to follow in their footsteps. All these years on, it still sounds fantastic - as this remastered reissue proves. Opener 'Atmospherique' effectively defined their timeless, NYC-inspired sound - think the warmth of deep house mixed with spacey synths, disco percussion and squelchy bass - while the subtly Latin-tinged 'Pina' sounds every bit as incredible in 2023 as it did at the turn of the Millennium. 'Rainy Street Feeling', which didn't make the cut on their celebrated debut album, is a real treat, too - a classy hybrid of loose-limbed deep house, sultry strings and nu-disco electronics that's worth the admission fee on its own.