CARL COX
Electronic Generations (BMG)
Every time UK techno A-lister Carl Cox releases an album of his own music – Electronic Generations is the fifth such release in a 30-year production career – it feels a little unexpected that he’s deigned to do so when his reputation and income are predominantly tied to his ability as a DJ. To that end, it’s not wholly surprising that this, his first artist LP in over a decade, started its conceptual life during lockdown.
For the most part, this bulky 17-track set reflects Cox’s re-exploration of analogue synths and a journey back to his dancefloor-centric, functional techno roots.
Electronic Generations is decidedly less eclectic than previous Cox albums, but has a higher hit rate, at least if you can vibe to strains of techno that bounce from slick, sweeping big room fare to rollicking mid-90s style acid to wormhole-y salvos of hi-hats and synth distortion. Further to these tracks’ origins in the period of shuttered clubs, Cox roadtested them live once he was able before refining them in the studio, and the whole is pretty clearly the work of someone who has spent, cumulatively, literal years inside DJ booths worldwide.
words NOEL GARDNER
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