My first exposure to the music of Thomas Brinkmann came in 1999 when I purchased the Adria/Blindsplit remix 12" done for Force Inc. with notorious sound pirateScanner. Anyone familiar with that understated meeting of great minimaltechno minds will surely appreciate what Brinkmann has to offer withhis latest release on the quirky Max Ernst label. Although the pressrelease for Tokyo + 1 details a kind of pretentious,quasi-academic take on the album typically found in pieces thatincorporate field recordings, the actual liner notes in the booklet arestripped of any such context with only a brief mention of themultinational sound source origins, allowing casual listeners toappreciate the nine tracks here on their own terms. Considering thatthis is a Thomas Brinkmann album, a respectable level ofexperimentation and creativity is applied to both the sound art collagepieces as well as the more conventional dancier tracks, achieving anadmirable balance. "109 Competition" lumps together snippets and loopsfrom what sounds like a Tokyo arcade into a chaotic yet surprisinglyrhythmic mix of simulated laser gunfire, dance-pop video games,conversational chatter, and a Ja Rule/Ashanti duet. While that may notseem like the most "musical" stew to the uninitiated, this solidembodiment of pop culture plunderphonics will delight found sound anddifficult listening fanatics. The pleasant tech-house ditty "3 st 2Shinjuku" somewhat recalls Brinkmann's work as Soul Center though itmaintains a proud otherness with some unexpected sample of the Pokemoncharacter Pikachu. "Love Song" offers the most gratifying result ofBrinkmann's work here, with crashing waves of unruly noise combatingagainst, submitting to, and merging with a dark stompy beat that wouldreceive a warm dancefloor welcome in the bowels of a warehouse rave.While many techno-savvy geeks might currently be salivating over theBrinkmann mixed Tour De Traum compilation, the less accessible yet thoroughly satisfying Tokyo +1 should not be overlooked. Read More
