MD1 is the first release from Minidisc only label n5MD. MD1 is a full hour of rich melodies and scraping beats from the likes of such veteran artists as Arovane, Lilienthal, EU and Neutral as well as new comers to the scene.

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Despite its many positive features, the MiniDisc has never really taken off as a wide spread music format, at least not in North America. So it may seem odd for someone to start up a label like n5MD for the release of material exclusively on MiniDisc, although they are probably counting on the fact that many electronic music geeks also tend to be tech geeks, making the percentage of MD owners amongst their target market considerably larger than amongst the general public. Whatever their reasoning, they haven't let the fact that they're working with an obscure format interfere with the quality of the work that it contains. Ten artists ranging from the well known (Arovane, EU, Lilienthal) to the unknown (Spark, Rivel, Vcam) contribute to the imprint's inaugural release, and all of them have provided extremely solid tracks. The result is a first rate collection of electronic/IDM sounds that deserves to be heard by as many ears as possible, so if you've been thinking about taking the plunge into the wonderful world of MiniDisc, you should consider this compilation another good reason to do it. re:mote induction

As a collection MD1 presents a strong selection of bands working within the area that is electronica. With that, this is the first release on the new minidisc-only label n5MD, hence the title of the release - MD1. As a medium I have to say that I like the mini disc, although it is currently under used; I am pleased to see a release of this quality on this format.

The compilation starts with the light melody and sparkle of Eopi by Spark. Clunking rhythms mix with glitch mechanisms while chimes and string play slow melody. The beat works in a 1-2-3 form, then loops, alongside that we see the melodic progression of plink and bass line. From the fade of Spark we step up a notch with Arovane's levd/a:ctrel. The bleep track goes round, finds its groove and accelerates. Increasing in its pulsed confidence after the first couple of times. Mechanisms whirr with the brush and clump of beat substitute. Arovane work in subtle layers, smooth flow working within the more clunky surface. Towards 4 minutes longer strokes tick, then patter as rain, with melody coming up in a more pronounced bass sigh. Wash, ba-bump, click-tock, repeat in layers. A saw tooth vibe comes in smoothly past 7 minutes, joining with tick gone bubbling - building to a micro kinetic conclusion.

A drawn out, spatial and swept sound carries Red Leaves the contribution by Precenphix. Quick light beats patter in, third-fourth stroke deeper and metallic tinged. A more curling sweep comes in with melody, and a more jangling counter in the percussion. Wandering notes play within the whole, forming a line of hollow melody. This starts to come up and the beat work becomes a more compressed structure. Winds return, with a harder bass ridge and forlorn piano notes. Towards 5 minutes the beats start to build back up into that, the melodic elements shifting emphasis. With a sustained tone we are into O2's 0002, bass ridge moving into that. slow layers build with tapping clicks and blips as rhythm. A reverberating tone and piano note come in, so that if there was any doubt that O2 was related to Gridlock it is dismissed here. The tonal influence of these notes is very Gridlock, though the way it builds melody within the slow, easy bass is less so. The stroke of the beats works with a pause - strike, moment, retract, loop.

An echoing rumble plays, with suggestion of a moist squelchiness - though the rise of melody and flat beat suggest more of what Lilienthal's Sucrosesand contains. This builds the solid beat backed by more transitory metallic strokes, while bass hums in rounded pulse. That bass is easy, soothing, while the melody is drawn out in strands, building to a patterned series of notes. Boop-bob pulses signal within the continuing flow, developing slowly as it progresses into a more pronounced melody. Contrasting percussive energy with more restrained bass. Melodic strokes building in string form past 5 minutes with this the beat work is more agitated. Though approaching 7 minutes and conclusion this is clearly gorgeous. A note, then sustain, note, continue, becoming the drone of ml's drg/n/drp. Squelched, spacey lines move through the background, developing into a more experimental layer. Clear layers work away - twang and ping, the electronic motions of the experimental and the cohesive melodic sigh that allows everything to balance as one piece. The layering strips - concentrating on the vibe and melody with an extended pulse triggered through the cycle. With this there is a scraping sound, one which would be cause for concern on vinyl, but is used here as a "noise" element. The stray sound acting as cut up to put the melody in a less synced, but no less engaging, progression. This continues to extend, all sounds integrated into the flow of this 10 minute piece.

From ml's final bass pulse we move to bubbling pulse notes of De-gress by Rivel. Smattering of static crackle beats works in, before leading to a more pronounced electronic percussion. The melody plays in a peak then fade off for each note, before developing into a more pronounced sequence of notes. In turn the beats gain emphasis, static now returning as beats, understated beats accelerating while the rest stays a mellow steadiness. With a buzz, and just the end of notes building together in a teasing manner we have vcam's dirwhildagmer. The twist of whir and click works in through this sound of micro mechanism. In the mix smooth sounds offer a tune to the constant motion of sound. The time works with hesitance and delay adding contrast and tension to the plink and stroke.

eu rush us with tsutu, though this emerges into a plump bass, squelching while beats crackle and pop. A vibrant edge builds into the suggestion of snapping layers. The deep bass is fairly solid in its motion, less deep a drawn out bass works. A duck whistle pulse works in a subdued moment before returning to the flow. tsutu is okay initially, but as the sounds emerge with progression the sound is more effective as a whole. The final track is Recoil by Neutral starting with a subtle layering of vibe and notes. Building in a slow drift through the first minute, clear notes are layered, their spacing giving emphasis to the swirl behind. Below a lighter piano melody can be heard, slowly increasing its audibility. Past the third minute a fizz of percussion comes in with more solid sounds in the vibe - building into a layered rhythm. This draws out past 4 minutes in a stripped conclusion.

Of the ten tracks on this compilation the clear standouts are those provided by O2, ml, vcam and Neutral. Though with those Spark, Arovane and Lilienthal all provide particularly good tracks. Overall MD1 mixes long mood pieces with those that collect lots of short rapid sounds together - though in the end they are all clean electronic works. igloomag

The first release on the n5MD, minidisc only imprint, is a compilation simply titled md1. An excellent group of talent has been gathered up on this release including some better known acts in the scene such as Arovane and Neutral and some up and coming acts such as Precenphix and ML. The disc starts off with the Autecher-esque track "Eopi" by Spark and quite smoothly into Arovanes "levd/a:ctrel". Arovane presents a song in his Atol Scrap mode, and the track is one of the highlights on the compilation. The majority of the tracks on this Minidisc, are on the more mellow side of IDM but a couple explore more of a straight up ambience: o2 (Mike Wells of Gridlock)'s "00002" and N and Neutral's uncharacteristic "Recoil". Precenphix expiriments with great success on a track that blends ambient pads with frantic breaks. An excellent start for a new label! seven

"n5md" is a new label established by cadoo of gridlock. this is not a completely unexpected development, since both gridlock members were getting more and more interested in idm sound, which became quite apparent in the latest gridlock/o2 material. this first compilation by the label (which, by the way, releases its material on minidisks only, hence the name) pulls together a very impressive lineup of electronic artists from quite a few countries across the world.

this compilation mostly consists of more melodic and minimal idm acts; most of the tracks are built using the same formula - combining pleasant melodic mellow strings and intricate, at times minimal, at times quite involved and complex, percussion. while the style of almost every track is somewhat similar, each artist managed to express his unique vision. I was very impressed by how emotional all the tracks were; luckily, unlike many idm compilations out there, there was almost no dry technicality and soulless experimentation.

my favorites on this compilation include opening "eopi" by canadian spark. the track is done along the lines of conventional idm - mellow warm keys are contrasted by intricate crunchy percussion producing little sonic splinters that are enveloped in gentle melodic textures. as usual, arovane shines with "levd/a:ctrel." this track features sparse rough beats that are dropped on the surface of the track in a disjointed manner; small atonal background melody develops, stroked by warm noises that together weave a transparent glowing texture.

another favorite is the track by ml ("m-luh"); for those of you that have been around for a while, the name "thine eyes" should ring a bell. ml is the successor of this project. "drg/n/drp" captured me with its balance of atonal ambient and rigid mechanized percussion that dominates majority of this track. heavy opening bassline instantly reminded me of early gridlock, later on small rigid beats join flowing synthetic strings. intricate percussion features strangely elongated beats, stuttering twisting textures, little breaks and small sonic eruptions that seem to live on their own. by the middle of the track the sound moves into a nice ambient piece with long pauses, small cut-up noises, clicks and distant humming bass. this almost cinematic landscape finally returns back to the original percussion textures just before it became too boring.

precenphix displayed slightly darker, more moodier sound on "redleaves". constantly pulsating percussion waves and laid-back darker strings were arranged on top of flowery electronica. the track slowly fades out into atmospheric piece that moves back to fast-paced percussion layers, still retaining its ambience. I guess its "full" richer sound was what attracted me.

closing track by neutral ("recoil") turned out to be one of my absolute favorites on this compilation. nicole miller not only impressed me with a nice composition and dense arrangements that were so refreshingly atypical for standard idm, but also with a balance of percussion elements that joined fully developed melody only towards the middle of the track. compressed heaviness and unusual nature of that percussion nicely contrasted fluid and rich melodic nature of the track, displaying all the best characteristics of this musician.

another track that should not be overlooked is titled "tsutu" by russian electronic outfit eu. they are quite well-known among the russian idm crowd, and it is nice to see their unexpected (at least for me) appearance on this compilation. "tsutu" is the heaviest track on this compilation, featuring almost "industrial" approach to sound elements. the track is full of corroded controlled beats, raw edgy percussion and frequencies. at the same time it has pleasantly stretched-out tidal waves of atonal touches that balance out static outbursts.

o2 presents its ".0002" that is built on slowly glowing synthline, gentle small keys and random noises. tiny clicks, twists, bleeps and swaying melodic undertones create a very minimal, transparent atmosphere. this track is rather pleasant, but not nearly as soft and emotional as ".0001" off gridlock/o2 split.

since I have been listening to sybarite so much lately, it was a nice surprise to see their labelmates lillienthal with "sucrosesand;" the track that has strangely "acoustic" organic sound as opposed to mechanized "standard" idm. raw percussion, mysterious basslines back up faster percussion and atonal acoustic strings. strange beats are crumbling and collapsing, moving in a liquid volatile fashion.

rivel delivers a combination of small firm beats and simple echoing melodic elements on "de-gress" that after a while get reduced to a few loops that slowly fade out into nothingness. it seems that the music is squeezed out of vcam's "dirwhildagmer." the sound is pushing through, getting tangled in slow swirling noises and reluctantly developing melody.

the only problem I had with this release was that it followed too closely the stylistic elements established by the idm genre. while all the artists approached it with creativity and talent, only a few manage to break out of it and create music that is not that easily classifiable (but it could be just me, simply overdosing on idm). apart from that, I can only recommend this compilation to anyone, and keep my eyes on all those new talents I encountered for the first time.