other releases... [mn001] va - first [mn002] andrey kiritchenko - scatter stars [mn003] lod - taskenti ep [mn004] g_n44f - 120_1 ep [mn005] coeval - distante [mn006] dataman - the most famous heroes ep [mn007] shalma- - second blur ep [mn008] masaya sasaki - picnic plan ep [mn009] titan and yez - cancel, don't save, save [mn010] irish - manufactures [mn011] .at/on - prostir [mn012] va - movin on

original aa characters:

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reviews:

die idee eine kleine schnuckelige ep auf basis von ascii-charakteren aufzubauen, finde ich definitiv einen witzigen ansatz. vor allem, wenn das cover als auch die tracks selbst, die fiktiven geschichten untermalen. und wenn dann auch noch zwei hit-tracks mit ein bisschen pop-ohrwurm-potenzial dazukommen, dann hat mich auch das erste dataman-release von vorne bis hinten überzeugt.

was andreas seibel als techno-produzent kann, dass sind definitiv in sich schlackernde disharmonische aber unglaublich deepe und groovende tracks. der legoego-labelkopf hat da in den letzten jahren sein ganz eigenes trademark entwickelt. tief unten bohrt irgendwo stumpf und monoton ein bass während sounds, clicks und percussion um die bassdrum tanzen.

techno zeigt sich hier nicht mit seiner von speed verzerrten schranzigen abfahrts-mentalität, sondern von einer eloquenten und swingenden seite, die man gerne auch bei cristian vogel und konsorten beobachtet. das hat sogwirkung vor allem in einem dunklen lauten raum voller schwitzender leiber. wie das auf mdma und sonstigen drogen wirkt, habe ich keine ahnung. könnte aber böse enden, so deep ist die übertragung.

das einzige was mir bis jetzt bei dataman immer fehlte, war so ein wenig pop-flair zwischen den ganzen kranken, psychoiden und manchmal auch recht anstrengenden tracks. einzeln ließen die sich immer konsumieren, aber danach musste man sich erst einmal erholen. auch auf "the most famous heroes ep" gibt es wieder solche tracks. die werden aber wie von einer äußeren klammer von den beiden hits "mr. illusion" und "mr. sunshine" zusammengehalten. exzellent!

by mo. @ phlow

combined review of mn006 and mn007
japan's minusn, or rather -n, has very nice releases to download, always with a nice cover, and always (with one exception), by artists i never heard of. like dataman and shalma-. the latter has four tracks (despite them being mp3s they still have the traditional length of a 12") of minimalist techno music, but not as stripped down as some of the german counterparts. mysteriously interwoven voices play a role in there somewhere, deep down, hypnotic and sleepy synths are played but the rhythm marches on. maybe an unlike combination? it is one that works actually quite nice. it's a pity that 'formranks' is a remix of the also present 'pretension', but otherwise quite nice.
also of dataman i know nothing. he selected five heroes to name his music after: mr. sunshine, mr. pussy, mr. fly, mr. illusion and mr. enregy. of course i am way too old to feel any connection to the world of manga, computer games and other kid stuff. dataman plays more straight forward techno/acid music, also in a pretty minimal vein. certainly 'mr. illusion' is a classic acid track that could been from the original chicago scene. dataman's music is less filled with lots of extra, small sounds and probably the better floor filler, whereas shalma-'s music would probably fit better at home. both are very pleasing, relaxing and escapist music releases.

by frans de waard @ vital weekly

comments:

posted by Eric - 2005.10.15

posted by remute - 2005.10.18

posted by mo. - 2005.10.26

posted by g_ - 2005.10.28

posted by Burdock - 2005.11.03

posted by Voltura - 2005.12.26

posted by Voltura - 2005.12.26

posted by cesar espino - 2006.01.06

posted by limbo - 2006.03.07

posted by Ulf Kramer - 2007.12.21

posted by dpm - 2008.03.08

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[mn006] dataman - the most famous heroes ep

01. mr. illusion (06:16)
- download this mp3 (192k, 8.62mb)

02. mr. energy (06:47)
- download this mp3 (192k, 9.34mb)

03. mr. pussy (05:59)
- download this mp3 (192k, 8.24mb)

04. mr. fly (06:19)
- download this mp3 (192k, 8.69mb)

05. mr. sunshine (05:52)
- download this mp3 (192k, 8.07mb)

download the whole release (zip, 43.2mb)

download the cover art (double-page)
(jpeg, 99.8kb, edited and compiled by g_)

liner notes by kengo miyazaki

after a little break, -n comes back with 5 most famous heroes created by one of the most prolific figures in the netaudio community, dataman. to show our gratitude to dataman for providing us the most famous heroes, we've asked japanese flash artist, nomi to make an animation with 5 of the most famous aa (ascii art) characters loved on the most famous japanese bulletin board, '2 channel (it's read 'ni-channeru.' more details here on 2ch.).' they'll play the heroes for us.

let's see who we've got here. the first hero is 'mr. illusion.' this guy has the quality that paralyzes our sense of reality with dreamy drone that slowly and smoothly shifts and turns into convulsive pulse. by the time the guy starts to murmur, we're already in the world of his fantasia. he shows us the path to communicate with other heroes that are waiting ahead of us with his acid throwing knives. he's played by 'hageshiku-ninja' who always deludes us around on 2ch.

then we have 'mr. energy.' the name explains it all. his energetic house beat with a little twist of glitches and high-pitched sound bits keeps us going through the deep forest of quacking stabs filled with hypnotic voice samples. 'giko-neko(cat)' plays this role with lots of energy. he's one of those characters that never surrenders.

now it's the time for 'mr. pussy.' he's 'the' hero. everything, the keyboard, the synth, the acid bass is built upon dissonance, but listen to the straight forward house beat underneath the chaotic face of the main chorus. he definitely and perfectly represents those lovable losers - men. 'dokuo' (poison guy - came from the japanese word 'dokushin-dansei (unmarried man)') is perfect for this role. he doesn't even have to act, but he can just be himself and sit there. he's one of the most lovable heroes of all time.

'mr. fly' is a real entertainer. this track is acid house of the 21st century. it's got all the essence of good old acid, but besides all the novel sounds that tickle us and make us want to do funky moves while we're on the dancefloor, it's carefully constructed with off-beat hits and accents that occur without us knowing it to keep us 21st century people dancing as if acid house is the hottest thing in town today. furthermore, just the right amount of reverb successfully separates and brings up all the individual sounds up to the front, and all of those techniques make this piece sound far from nostalgic. this one's definitely for 'ppa-kun.' he always entertains us good. 'mr, fly' is fly but extremely friendly and never turns us down.

here goes the last hero. his name is 'mr. sunshine.' its experimental beat in the beginning grabs us hard, and it's just the beginning. from there, he takes us all the way up in the sky with the pad-powered pulsing synth escalator bound to what seems like heaven. up there, he welcomes and treats us gently with nostalgic melodies that almost feel like we're back in our mothers' wombs. then all the sudden, we realize that we're brought back to where we began. now we know this whole thing has been a fantastic roller coaster ride provided by 'mr. sunshine.' it just takes us all the way to the end without a single breath. for this role, we have 'monar,' one of the most beloved aa characters on 2ch. he's the sunshine. he's everywhere shining on us.

now the show's over. it's time for them to go home. let's just hope to see them again soon in the near future.