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BEGIN LINE_NOIZ.1
I S S U E # ! N O V E M B E R 1 , 1 9 9 3
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n(e@u$r@o)m_a(n)c#e*r%(&^(#&%)&~!%%$#@`@$&)(*^)*&(*$&(%$)$p^h$a)s*e$s(h^i(f*t
$@$^@$##@*^%#@%@%$^ LL IIIIII NN NN EEEEEEEE s$u&b%l(i$m(i)n*a)l
&%?><%&$@?&%#$@&>$# LL II NNNN NN EE }{m"e#s^s{a~g%e%s#$
b(i@l*l)y*i^d^o*l_$ LL II NN NNNN EEEEE *#$!$)!(_~)#(@(%)(#
f$u%c)k(o*f%f*!(!^$ LL II NN NNN EE &^#$h$y#p(n*o#t*i*c
!%R$&^%$#^&*%#\.%$% LLLLLLLL IIIIII NN NN EEEEEEEE (!&$^#(*%(*#&%^#)()
/\ /\ /\ / /~~/ / ~~~/ /\ /\
____/ \ / \_____/ \/ ___ /__/ ___ / ___ /___ _____/ \ / \ _____
\/ \/ \/
L I N E N O I Z
()()()() CyberPunk Electronic Techno-babble and assorted Oddities ()()()()()()
Well, gee. This is the first issue. It looks like this issue is mainly a
one man show. Sorry. I hope to get alot more submissions for the next
issue. Please send all questions, comments or suggestions to me at:
ae687@freenet.carleton.ca
Thanks.
[][][][][][][][][][][ L I N E N O I Z ][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]
I S S U E # ! N O V E M B E R 1 , 1 9 9 3
: File !
: SMALL FAQ FOR THE E-ZINE
: Billy Biggs <ae687@freenet.carleton.ca>
: File @
: CYBERPUNK DEFENITION LIST #1
: Billy Biggs <ae687@freenet.carleton.ca>
: And Various Others
: File #
: FRONT 242 05:22:09:12 Off CD REVIEW
: Al Crawford <awrc@dcs.ed.ac.uk>
: File $
: SUBMISSION GUIDE
: Billy Biggs <ae687@freenet.carleton.ca>
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
File - !
*****************
SMALL FAQ OF THE ZINE
*****************
First off, we have written up a series of questions designed to introduce
this e-zine and what the hell we are trying to do here.
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS E-ZINE??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This 'zine was created to provide a forum for disscussion and expression
of views and issues related to cyberpunk themes. We wish to allow you to
show your own personal views on CyberPunk and what it means to you. We do
not have any restrictions as to who can contribute or recieve this 'zine.
You can contribute whether or not you consider yourself a cyberpunk or
part of the cyberpunk community (if it exists. That is another question).
HOW OFTEN IS THIS E-ZINE GOING TO COME OUT??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, right now we aren't quite sure. We are looking at maybe every two
weeks a small version comes out or a large version that comes out monthly.
Please express any comments or suggestions.
WHAT KIND OF CYBERPUNK IS THIS E-ZINE ABOUT??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This e-zine is going to taylor to all forms of CP, from the modern day
cyberpunk to the William Gibson style cyberpunk. We hope to discuss
CP sci-fi, CP music, dress, food and other controversial issues.
If you have any questions that you want added to this list, please
send them to me and I will include them in an updated version of this
FAQ to be posted some time soon.
WHAT IS GOING TO BE IN FUTURE ISSUES??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, we have plans for science-fiction stories to be posted in parts
throughout the coarse of a few issues. We also are planning to have
expository works on cyberpunk views/art/music/litterature/clothing/
fodd etc. Each issue is probably going to be designed with one main
disscussion. For example, this issue has a large article on the
defenition of cyberpunk. Maybe some hacker/phreaker/anarchy kinda
stuff will be posted in future issues if I get anything interesting.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gee, it's easy. Send mail to my handy-dandy mail distributer guy at:
dodger@fubar.bk.psu.edu
With the words:
Subscription LineNoiz <your address>
in the body of the letter. Is everyone Okay on that?? Good. We'll
be awaiting your subscription.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
File - @
. C Y B E R P U N K .
d e f e n i t i o n l i s t
#1 of an ongoing series
probably to be posted
every two months or so
by: Billy Biggs and alot of others
-- Assorted meanings not neccesarily reflecting the views of everybody --
[INTRO]
Cyberpunk, the undefinable. Do we really need a defenition? Do we need
to classify ourselves as a seperate entity from the world of the
network. Probably not, but here are the defenitions given by many
people from many walks of life.
[DA DEFS]
First off, we have the FAQ defenition. The defenition tailored to please
all and show our image to the world (you may not think so, that's your
opinion).
This is from the *NEW* FAQ file.
>From: erich@bush.cs.tamu.edu (Erich Schneider)
1. What is cyberpunk, the literary movement?
The first use of "cyberpunk" to designate a body of literature is
credited to Gardner Dozois, who, at the time (the early '80s), was
editor of _Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine_. He cribbed it
from the title of a short story by Bruce Bethke, "Cyberpunk". (Bethke
has since proclaimed himself to be an "anti-cyberpunk".)
Before its christening, the "cyberpunk movement", known to its members
as "The Movement", had existed for quite some time, centered around
Bruce Sterling's samizdat, _Cheap Truth_. Authors like Sterling,
Rucker, and Shirley submitted articles pseudonymously to this
newsletter, hyping the works of people in the group and vigorously
attacking the "SF mainstream". This helped form the core "movement
consciousness". (A tar-file containing the run of _Cheap Truth_ is
available by anonymous FTP as "ftp.u.washington.edu:/pub/user-supported/
alt.cyberpunk/Essays.and.Articles/Cheaptruth/cheap.tar".)
Cyberpunk literature, in general, deals with marginalized people in
technologically-enhanced cultural "systems". In cyberpunk stories'
settings, there is usually a "system" which dominates the lives of
most "ordinary" people, be it an oppresive government, a group of
large, paternalistic corporations, or a fundamentalist religion. These
systems are enhanced by certain technologies (today advancing at a
rate that is bewildering to most people), particularly "information
technology" (computers, the mass media), making the system better at
keeping those within it inside it. Often this technological system
extends into its human "components" as well, via brain implants,
prosthetic limbs, cloned or genetically engineered organs, etc. Humans
themselves become part of "the Machine". This is the "cyber" aspect of
cyberpunk.
However, in any cultural system, there are always those who live on
its margins, on "the Edge": criminals, outcasts, visionaries, or those
who simply want freedom for its own sake. Cyberpunk literature focuses
on these people, and often on how they turn the system's technological
tools to their own ends. This is the "punk" aspect of cyberpunk.
The best cyberpunk works are distinguished from previous work with
similar themes by a certain style. The setting is urban, the mood is
dark and pessimistic. Concepts are thrown at the reader without
explanation, much like new developments are thrown at us in our
everyday lives. There is often a sense of moral ambiguity; simply
fighting "the system" (to topple it, or just to stay alive) does not
make the main characters "heroes" or "good" in the traditional sense.
2. What is cyberpunk, the subculture?
Spurred on by cyberpunk literature, in the mid-1980's certain groups
of people started referring to themselves as cyberpunk, because they
correctly noticed the seeds of the fictional "techno-system" in
Western society today, and because they identified with the
marginalized characters in cyberpunk stories. Within the last few
years, the mass media has caught on to this, spontaneously dubbing
certain people and groups "cyberpunk". Specific subgroups which are
identified with cyberpunk are:
Hackers, Crackers, and Phreaks: "Hackers" are the "wizards" of the
computer community; people with a deep understanding of how their
computers work, and can do things with them that seem
"magical". "Crackers" are the real-world analogues of the "console
cowboys" of cyberpunk fiction; they break in to other people's
computer systems, without their permission, for illicit gain or simply
for the pleasure of exercising their skill. "Phreaks" are those who do
a similar thing with the telephone system, coming up with ways to
circumvent phone companies' calling charges and doing clever things
with the phone network. All three groups are using emerging computer
and telecommunications technology to satisfy their individualist
goals.
Cypherpunks: These people think a good way to bollix "The System" is
through cryptography and cryptosystems. They believe widespread use of
extremely hard-to-break coding schemes will create "regions of privacy"
that "The System" cannot invade.
Ravers: These are the folks who use synthesized and sampled music,
computer-generated psychedelic ("cyberdelic") art, and designer drugs
to create massive all-night dance parties and love-fests in empty
warehouses.
However, one person's "cyberpunk" is another's everyday obnoxious
teenager with some technical skill thrown in, or just someone looking
for the latest trend to identify with. This has led many people
to look at self-designated "cyberpunks" in a negative light. Also,
there are those who claim that "cyberpunk" is undefinable (which
in some sense it is, being concerned with outsiders and rebels), and
resent the mass media's use of the label, seeing it as a cynical
marketing ploy.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
This defenition is taken from the old FAQ.
>From: ahawks@nyx.cs.du.edu
"The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel"
:::::opening lines of Neuromancer
Asking someone to define Cyberpunk is like asking someone to define art. Each
person has their own ideas about what art is, what constitutes art and what
doesn't. Yet we all still know art when we see it. The same is true for
Cyberpunk - each cyberpunk has their own definition for it, yet common threads
remain. In basic terms, these might be definied by an emphasis on
individualism and technology (both in the present and in the future - and in
the past as in The Difference Engine [a book by Gibson & Sterling]).
So what seperates cyberpunk from other types of sci-fi? Generally, cyberpunk
occures in the not-so-distant-future. It generally occurs on earth, in a time
where technology is prominent. Characters are generally "average Johnny
Mnemonics" - not some fantastic hero with lots of virtue and a blinding smile.
Cyberpunk revels in high-tech low-lifes, so you can expect to see lots of crime
and back-stabbing and drugs and such. These are the basic elements of
Gibsonesque CP (cyberpunk) - we've all seen it before in movies such as Blade
Runner and TV Shows like Max Headroom.
In many cases, it appears as if our world is evolving into a classic cyberpunk
setting: the rise of post-zaibatsu Japan with it's monopoly on technology,
American cities developing into the "sprawl" (basically just large,
mega-cities), drugs and crime are predominant in some cultures, and we thrive
and survive on technology. So, it isn't too hard to see how cyberpunk evolved
from being just a literary movement into a growing sub-culture - industrial and
post-industrial aspects of the culture, virtual reality, rave parties,
nootropics, computer hacking - they're all aspects of our culture, they all
would fit nicely into a Gibson novel, and they all exist *now*.
So, what makes a cyberpunk? If you already knew all this stuff, and you're
laughing at my generalities and inconsistencies, then you're definitely a
cyberpunk. If you're a techno-junkie or an info-junkie, than you'd probably
consider yourself a cyberpunk. Basically, if you live in a world in the
not-so-distant-future, ahead of the masses (the masses being guys named Buford
who sit out in front of their trailer homes in lawn chairs sipping a Bud and
watching the Indy 500 on an old tv), then you could probably safely consider
yourself a cyberpunk. It's a spectrum, though - I mean, it's kind of like if
Micahelangelo had an assistant, he would probably not consider the assistant an
artist. Yet to his friends and family, that assistant may seem like a great
artist. I consider myself a cyberpunk compared to the masses that walk the
halls of my school, yet at a virtual reality conference in the presence of the
likes of Jaron Lanier, Gibson, John Perry Barlow, Timothy Leary, RU Sirius,
etc. I would probably be more hesitant in labeling myself a true cyberpunk.
But one the beauties of cp is that it is still somewhat elitist to an extent:
members of the community realize that we who walk on the fringes of culture
need to hold each others' hand until the masses join us - the communal
atmosphere, at times, can be seen as similair to the early hippie movement of
the late 50's/early 60's.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
But, unfortunately, the media has siezed cyberpunk and overexaggerated
it to make a story.
In the March 1, 1993 issue of Time Magazine, their story on cyberpunk
is this:
"With virtual sex, smart drugs and synthetic rock'n'roll, a new
counterculture is surfing the dark edges of the computer age"
"They call it cyberpunk, a late-20th century term derived from CYBERNETICS,
the science of communication and control theory, and punk, an antisocial
rebel or hoodlum. Whithin this odd pairing lurks the essence of cyber-
punk's international culture - a way of looking at the world that
combines infatuation with high-tech tools and disdain for conventional
ways of using them. Origionaly applied to a school of hard-boiled science-
fiction writers and then to certain semitough computer hackers, the word
cyberpunk now covers a broad range of music, art, psycadelics, smart drugs
and cutting-edge technology."
In the May 29, 1993 Ottawa Citizen newspaper, they defined cyberpunk as
"[...] an emersing youthful sub-culture, fusing punk rock's anti-
authoritarianism with a love of cutting-edge technology."
Summed up in a sentance. I hate that.
I pulled this one off internet somewhere.
THE BOSTON GLOBE Tuesday,November 24, 1992 LIVING ARTS pg. 29 & 32
[INTERESTING ARTICLE ON CP DELETED] (I might post it next issue)
Cyberculture: the digital society of the late 20th century,
which includes electronic couch potatoes, academic researchers,
corporate executives, college kids, cyberpunks, et al.
Cyberpunk: 1. a science fiction movement; 2. a subculture of
cyberculture populated mainly by hackers, crackers and phreaks;
3. a pop culture phenomenon based on 1 and 2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Back to the net, here is a definition that belongs in the dictionary.
Real creative in my opinion.
>From: jrw@engr.LaTech.edu ("James R. Weeks")
Cybernetics: the study of human control functions and of mechanical and
electrical systems designed to replace them. [< Gk _kybernet(es)_
helmsman, steersman (_kybern(an)_ (to) steer + _-etes_ agent suffix) +
-ics]
Punk: defn(1): Any prepared substance that will smolder and can be used
to light fireworks, fuses, etc.
defn(2):n.
1._slang_ a. something or someone worthless or unimportant.
b. a petty criminal or hoodlum.
2._See PUNK ROCK_
3._Archaic_ a prostitute
adj.
4._informal_ poor in quality or condition
5._slang_ characteristic of punk rock or those who perform
it.
Punk_Rock: a type of rock-'n'-roll, culminating in the 1970's and
characterized by load, insistent music and abusive or violent protest
lyrics, and whose performers and followers are distinguished by extremes
of dress and socially defiant behavior.
cat -rndmix Cybernetics Punk(defn(1)) Punk(defn(2)) Punk_Rock > cyberpunk
cyberpunk: 1._slang_ a technosuperior, extrasocially unacceptable,
bad-ass-motherfucker who is licensed to -and will- flame or worse for
themselves or for someone at a low price (although it almost always starts
high).
2._slang_ is the only way in which to define cyberpunk
---------------------------------------------------------------------
>From: Tragedy@cup.portal.com
The pioneering soldiers of the 21st century. Embarking into the new
technological frontier.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
>From: bfundak@andy.bgsu.edu (The Changing Man)
cyberpunk-A way of life centering around computer technology, hardcore
music and teen angst. Cyberpunk gives us an ability to be free.
Technology belongs to the young and we must exploit it to our advantage.
It is the new age...
Ooo. Revolutionary. I liked this one. Personal opinion applies here.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
>From: DHT104@PSUVM.PSU.EDU
: There are really several definitions of the word 'cyberpunk'. First
and foremost is the popular 'electronic outlaw' image, the rough rider
in a new area of exploration. The western cowboy all over again...
Other images abound. As is nearly everything in life, it is a matter
of presonal preference and thought. One day you wake up and say "Gee,
I'm a cyberpunk today" and go off and hack the Pentagon or something
(not that _I_ would _ever_ do something like that :-)). Then tomorrow
you wake up and say "Gee, I'm a cyberpunk today" and go off into the
little place called your computer and build a program that will end
all world problems when uploaded and then forget to save it... :-)
The whole point of all this blabber is that the definition is all a
matter of personal interrpretation. It's like a new religion; Martin
Luther is just waiting in the wings... Someone will always have a
different definition but the only definition that counts is yours!
Can't you tell I'm into freedom and individuality? :-)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, those were the defenitions. Sorry I didn't have more. In
conclusion we can say that cyberpunk is undefinable. One cannot
give it a purpose or a founding. Those who would most likely be
considered cyberpunk either don't realize it or don't want to be
cyberpunk. CP is personal. What it means to you is different from
what it means to me, or what it means to Billy Idol. Let's just
keep on doing what it looks like were supposed to be doing and
maybe someday someone will invent cyberpunk.
In the mean time, I have started this e-zine and intend to continue
it.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
File - #
. N E W F R O N T 2 4 2 C D R E V I E W .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Posted to usenet by Al Crawford
Intro by Billy Biggs
Fairly recently (this is yesterdays news for alot of you but this is
our first issue so we aren't tottaly up to date) Front 242 released
their latest CD entitled Evil Off. I have for you a review of the CD,
which by the way has not been released (or just been released) in
North America.
For those of you who do not consider Front 242 cyberpunk then I am
sorry if you do not like this review in the 'zine and please tell
me and I will post your views in the next issue.
Thanks to Al Crawford for letting me repost his darn nice review.
>From: Al Crawford <awrc@dcs.ed.ac.uk>
Subject: Review: Front 242 - 05:22:09:12 Off
Front 242 05:22:09:12 Off RRE 22 CDX [Bel]
Total Running Time: 71 min 21 sec
1. Animal (Cage) 3.00
2. Animal (Gate) 3.02
3. Animal (Guide) 2.44
4. Modern Angel 4.12
5. Junkdrome 7.35
6. Serial Killers Don't Kill Their Girlfriend 5.57
7. Skin (Fur Coat) 3.59
8. GenEcide 6.53
9. Crushed 6.13
10. offEND 1.38
11. Animal (Zoo) 4.02
12. Serial Killers Don't Kill Their Boyfriend 3.08
13. Happiness (More Angels) 6.39
14. Crushed (Obscene) 4.09
15. Melt (Again) 5.06
16. Speed Angels 2.52
_05:22:09:12 Off_ is the second album by Front 242 this year, following hot
on the heels of the excellent _06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ which appeared in the
spring. Despite some new elements appearing in the group's sound, that
album was still easily recognisable as a Front 242 album. The same is not
necessarily true for this new one though - while several tracks have that
familiar F242 sound, the rest show the group experimenting a lot more than
in their recent releases and many tracks have only a little in common with
_06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ and almost nothing in common with their earlier
works. I suspect that many fans of the group may find that this new disc
takes some getting used to since it's *so* different from anything they
have done before.
The disc kicks off with three versions of "Animal" - well, that's what the
insert claims anyway. The second and third tracks are definitely what they
claim to be, but "Animal (Cage)" is an ambient piece of low-pitched chords,
electronic effects, the occasional split-second snippet of melody, distant
screams and a wide variety of difficult to identify noises. It's all quite
hypnotic and gets the album off to a good start although it bears no
resemblance whatsoever to any of the other mixes of the track. The next
version ("Animal (Gate)") is, superficially at least, back on a more
familiar track. The rhythm is more than a little reminiscent of
"Headhunter" but the rest of the song is considerably different - it is
somewhat minimalist, consisting of little more than the rhythm track and
vocals, and the vocals themselves are something entirely new for Front 242
- they're heavily distorted (gated?) and sound distinctly female! There's
also a soulful female backing vocal that appears from time to time. The
third mix of "Animal" adds more meat to the bones of the rhythm track
introduced in the previous mix. The sound is richer and denser, with the
usual Jean-Luc De Meyer vocals, and other than being slightly more
techno-oriented than most of the material on _Up Evil_ there's nothing here
to frighten off fans of 242's earlier work.
"Modern Angel" also appears in several versions on the CD, although these
are spread out across the disc rather than clumped together. The techno
influence is again strongly in evidence, along with aggressive yet
androgynous screamed/distorted vocals and more of those soft female backing
vocals. It's all rather appealing - especially the haunting melodic
interludes - although the extended tinkly outro does go on a little too
long. "Junkdrome" is the first of the three remixes from _06:21:03:11 Up
Evil_ on the disc, and is a lengthy and drastic instrumental remix of
"Crapage" that moves from an ambient intro that's almost three minutes long
into something that sounds like Jean-Michel Jarre on steroids. "Serial
Killers Don't Kill Their Girlfriend" is also worth a listen - an odd,
bouncy beat combined with Jean-Luc singing interesting lyrics and a really
melodic chorus that's pure Front 242.
The second of the _06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ remixes is "Skin (Fur Coat)", which
takes the original track and beefs it up into something more substantial
with plenty of rich synthesizer sounds and a chunkier beat. True, it also
has some slightly cliched bleepy sequences, but it still preserves the
essence of the original track. "GenEcide" starts as a tinkly Orb-like
piece, with pretty female vocals but the beat that eventually emerges and
the addition of distorted, shrieking vocals mark it as something a little
different. The contrast between the distorted screams and the untreated
female vocals is interesting but the track on the whole has a distinctly
un-Front 242 feel to it - it is impossible to make any comparisons to
earlier releases since they've never done anything that sounded like this
before.
Compare this with "Crushed", where the first notes show clearly that we're
back in safer territory. While the contemporary beat and the presence of
yet more of those female vocals jars slightly, the synth sound is
unmistakable. The distorted yet melodic vocals work very well indeed,
making this track one of the more enjoyable ones on the album.
"offEND" is presumably meant to be the tailpiece of the LP version of the
album - a short ambient track that takes the album out in a similar manner
to the way "Animal (Cage)" brought it in. However, both the CD and (to a
lesser degree) cassette versions of the album offer additional tracks -
another six in the case of the CD.
The first of these is yet another version of "Animal" - this time it's the
"Animal (Zoo)" mix that sounds even more like "Headhunter" than either of
the earlier versions did. In many ways it is a mix of those versions,
combining the more substantial sound of the "Animal (Guide)" mix with the
vocals of "Animal (Gate)" and thickening the sound still further in the
process. "Serial Killers Don't Kill Their Boyfriend" is a noisier (and
considerably shorter) version of "Serial Killers Don't Kill Their
Girlfriend" that is to all intents an instrumental - there are a few vocals
here and there but they are so heavily distorted that they are almost
completely unintelligible.
"Happiness (More Angels)" is a somewhat repetitive remix of "Modern Angel"
that strongly stresses the techno aspects while dispensing with the vocals.
As such it's quite good but there are hundreds of artists putting out
anonymous identikit techno like this and I personally think Front 242 (or
what is left of Front 242 - Richard 23 seems to have gone, and Jean-Luc De
Meyer isn't much in evidence on this album either) would be better off
pursuing their own distinctive sound instead of just following the trend.
"Crushed (Obscene)" gives that track a similar treatment and in the process
throws out most of those lovely lush synths but the combination of the
distorted yet haunting female vocals and the subtle rhythm track still
works reasonably well and is reminiscent of a hard-edged Single Gun Theory.
"Melt (Again)" is the third and final track from _06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ to
be remixed here. The differences are minor - the track has been stripped
down, the percussion has been pumped up and a bucketful of extra effects
have been thrown into the mix for good measure. Oh, and doesn't that new
intro sound just the teeniest bit reminiscent of an old Skinny Puppy track?
"Smothered Hope" or "Far Too Frail", I can never remember which. The CD is
rounded off by "Speed Angels", the third remix of "Modern Angel". This, as
the name suggests, is *fast* and marries the atmospheric synths and some of
the vocals of the original with a high BPM breakbeat techno rhythm track.
Short but sweet.
My general impressions of this album are mixed. There is no doubt in my
mind that this is the most innovative album Front 242 have released in a
long time - all their past albums have developed their sound steadily but
_05:22:09:12 Off_ seems to leap in several different directions at once. I
think it is the precise directions they've taken that concern me - while
it's interesting to hear Front 242 trying their hand at commercial techno
that's the one time when the album seems to lose any distinctive flavour.
Their attempts at ambience work well, although the pictures they conjure up
would only fit in with the trendily peaceful ambient techno imagery of
tropical rain forests and dolphins etc if you were willing to throw Agent
Orange and perhaps a couple of dolphin-unfriendly tuna fishing operations
into the equation. The tracks that seem to work best are those where
they've thrown all the ingredients - the usual Front 242 EBM sound, techno
influences from hardcore to ambient, heavily distorted vocals - in
together, mixed them around a bit and stuck them together.
Like _06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ the album is nicely put together, with tracks
flowing together via subtle bridges. However, unlike the previous album
where the overall effect was of a seamless whole (with the possible
exceptions of the add-on remixes on the CD and "Religion") this new album
just doesn't seem to hold together as well. This might be due to the
jarring contrast between some of the tracks, it might be because of the way
that where _06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ flowed from beginning to end, _05:22:09:12
Off_ has loops in its flow with tracks seeming to pop up again and again.
Either way the result is discontinuity and disorientation, although that
might (given the schizoid nature of the album) be intentional.
As with the previous album, the initial release of _05:22:09:12 Off_ in
Europe at least comes in a special poster pack in the "Compac Plus"
card/plastic box that has the dubious privilege of being about the only
cardboard CD box I've seen that can give a jewel box a run for its money.
Those who object to cardboard packing in general rather than just to
Digi-paks should (in Europe at least) probably hold off a few weeks before
buying this, as by that time the regularly jewel boxed version should be
appearing.
Speaking of who should buy this - fans of older Front 242 who found
_06:21:03:11 Up Evil_ a little too adventurous or those who liked it for
its moves towards the guitar-oriented end of the dance-industrial genre
should probably steer clear. However, the ambient and techno influences
that abound here mean this album might appeal to some people who didn't
particularly warm to _06:21:03:11 Up Evil_. So I'll give it exactly the
same rating I gave that album, since what this album lacks in memorable
songs it more than makes up for in its variety and experimentation.
Erland Rating: +3
--
Al Crawford - awrc@dcs.ed.ac.uk
Department Of Computer Science, The University of Edinburgh
Rm 1410, JCMB, Kings Buildings, Mayfield Rd, EDINBURGH, EH9 3JZ, Scotland
Tel: +44 (0) 31 650 5165 Fax: +44 (0) 31 667 7209
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File - $
S U B M I S S I O N G U I D E Ver 1.00
For submissions to this E-Zine I am looking for the following:
> Cyberpunk Defenitions (for the list)
> Opinions
> Happenings (hacks, related CP information)
> Reviews (Movies, Music, Litterature)
> Just plain neato net stuff (little things)
> Science-Fiction
> If you can get an interview w/somebody neat
> Tech info (cool CP kinda stuff)
> Computer Underground Info:
If I recieve any interesting hack/phreak/anarchy
I will probably post it as is. If you want certain
parts blanked out, I will.
Annonymous posting is okay.
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THIS SPACE AT THE END OF THE E-ZINE IS RESERVED
FOR A CP SCIENCE FICTION STORY. IF YOU CAN WRITE ONE OR HAVE
ONE WRITTEN THAT I COULD POST HERE IN PARTS THEN PLEASE CONTACT
ME RIGHT AWAY OKAY???? GOOD.
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Next week/month's issue will have a large article on cyberpunk ethics
and opinions. What slogans/attitudes can you think of?
I am awaiting any submissions you might have.
Please send anything interesting.
END LINE_NOIZ.1
So that's it.
Sorry about the spelling.
Expect issue 2 to be out soon (yeah, um, soon)
Please sendsubmissions.
Thanks.
L8r.
--
Billy Biggs Ottawa, Canada "If you don't want anyone to know,
ae687@Freenet.carleton.ca don't do it."
--
Billy Biggs Ottawa, Canada "When all else fails,
ae687@Freenet.carleton.ca read the instructions"
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