MFG have released their first album, The Prophecy, in 1996. Many of the tracks on that album were recorded much earlier, in a time when computerized sound editing was something of a novelty, and as such it sounds a bit experimental and not all together in sound and direction, although being one of the best Goa CDs ever made. And here we are, a bit more than a year later, the world keeps revolving, sound tech keeps evolving and its time to party. MFG's second release New Kind of World, starts exactly where its predeccesor quits and raises the sound barrier to a new level.
Electric Bubbles (T1) is a track eager to get on its way. It introduces the MFG sound (big base, twisty sfx, floaty tunes) to those who may have forgotten it, a very nice track that does the job of setting the mood for the rest of the journey. It's a bit hypnotic and you lose touch for a while but as When we Dream (T2) starts you immediately wake up. One of the most powerful beat entrances ever written. The mega base drum hits your spinal chord and ear drums, the groove puts your body in synch, the floaty melodies bring your brain to the right frequency and put a smile on your face. At min 5.40 starts an MFG trademark: a Monumental Build Up. You gotta dance this to understand how high a well put together build up like this one and many others on this album, can take you. Experience (T3), maximizes the groove using low base lines and scratch synths. The unforgettable samples and melody and that pounding beat is what made this track one of MFG's biggest hits. The build up at min5. 20 is awesome and is followed by a powerful and very victorious tune that stays in your memory forever. Alien's Land (T4) is another strong track, sounding a bit Astralish, with a lot of grinding synths and static sfx and it flows beautifully into track 5. The Waking Mind sounds compressed and very intense with a nice hi-hat line on top of a quick base line, that is relived by a melodic break beat at min3.20 and slowly builds up from there. I like the change in min6.00 which brings back the compressed feel that is enhanced by another nice build up in min7.00.
You need to take a breather after that and the beginning of We are the Machines (T6) lets you do just that with a steady beat and a melody that evolves gently till a beat break at min3.15 that introduces a very loud and distinctive "cricket buzz" sound which gives me goose bumps. A spooky melody follows and is joined by little melody lines, like a conversation between aliens, with a lot of well timed breaks and build ups. Nice. Born Into A New World (T7) has a gentle start but it is a tough little number from the point where the beat really kicks in at min2.20, with a strong bass line and a lot of little sfx talk. T8, Peaceful Relaxation starts with a nice topical sample but is everything but relaxing, well maybe compared to the previous tracks but it is still pounding, with nice melody changes- eastern followed by spooky whistling followed by a pure goa tune. The title track (T9), is slow to evolve but the beat entrance at min1.50 is worth it with a colossal kick sound. It's one of my favorite morning tracks because of the many melody changes and their verity- flute lines on top of goa synths create a very floaty atmosphere but a very groovy one. You get the sense that this track took some time to make- it's a lot to handle.
In Project Genesis, MFG's follow up from 1998, the group decided to explore the darker side of trance and abandon the morning anthem business, but I hope that not for long because these morning tunes are what these guys do best. The thing about this album (and it is an album: all the tracks have a very definitive and common sound), is that it doesn't bore you even if it's the 200th time you put it in the stereo and it gets better once you learn to sing along to it. The tracks are very strong, yet with an airy feel to them, an exelant blend of light and heavy. This is a pure morning CD with every thing you can expect- energetic to the max, many long buildups, floaty happy melodies, and head banging beat. |
