Rough Trade Shops: Electronic

By citing the attendance figures of Berlin's Love Parade and the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, Rob Young's liner notes to Rough Trade Shops: Electronic level the ultimate argument against those who feel that electronic music suffers from the inability to connect with people like rock & roll. Another argument is the existence of this spectacular double-disc compilation, which ransacks four decades of electronic music -- from Rod Freeman & the Blue Men's prophetic "I Hear a New World" (1960) to Kevin Blechdom's "Peanuts" (2001) -- and manages to present a front-to-back listenable digest in the process, with a track selection that successfully marries pop (Depeche Mode, Stereolab, New Order) with academia (Pierre Henry, John Cage, Raymond Scott). Impeccably compiled by the staff of the Rough Trade shops in England, Electronic could be seen as a starter kit for the curious just as much as a treasured one-stop anthology for seasoned aficionados. While the expansive selection of this compilation is a major point of awe, what truly makes Electronic work so well is the keen sequencing that provides for some strange -- albeit surprisingly fitting -- bedfellows. The BBC Radiophonic Workshop's legendary theme from Dr. Who works as a great setup for I-F's loony "Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass"; the crisp Krautpop of To Rococo Rot's "Cars (Variant)" forms an unlikely bridge between the damaged Krautrock of Faust's "Just a Second (Starts Like That!)" and the cosmic Krautfunk of Can's "I Want More"; the sequence of the Human League's "Being Boiled" followed by Aux 88's "Direct Drive" evidences the link between Sheffield's electonic pop and Detroit's electro. While one could argue that something from Model 500 would have plugged a gap between the two songs in the last example, it would be pointless to think of what should have been included and what important movements were excluded. After all, there's a number in the title, which hopefully indicates that this will be the first in a series. At any rate, this is a valuable guide through a puzzling maze that doubles as an immensely pleasurable ride. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide