DJ Hardware

Soundshock Vol 1: The Funky Breaks Edition (Street Beat)
by Scott Hefflon

I’m never really sure if this is supposed to be a various artists collection or not. Who cares, DJ Hardware presses all the right buttons on The Trance Edition. Similar to The Funky Breaks Edition, this is a long, long CD, which subtly builds upon itself, then loosens up a bit, then begins again. Imagine, if you will, birds all resting in a tree; more and more birds flock to the tree, yet sometimes a few leave at a time, and sometimes large numbers leave all at once. It’s impossible for me to describe this music, other than the obvious: there’s a lot of building Big Beats, with bits of drum’n’bass mixed in, lots of synths and keyboard playing housy dance music, looping samples and phrases, and not much in the way of distracting lyrics. It’s just pure energy. Like the instrumental break in your favorite dance mix (for those – like me – who’re still used to there being a singer) or, for those used to this, it’s trance. Duh. The name says it all (once you realize that trance can either be subtle and swaying or pulsing rhythmically, soothingly, like the consistent knocking of a radiator or the humming of a fan). The Funky Breaks is much the same seamless weaving, but has many more beat-only segments. And the beats are choppier and, well, funkier. Again, duh. Both of these are great, unobtrusive CDs for roadtrips (as long as you don’t try to sing along), working out, cleaning your house, or playing extremely loud in your Discman to keep the outside world where it belongs: outside.