The Dutch label The Third Movement releases what I call “post-gabber”. “Gabber” was the biggest Dutch subculture a decade or two ago, but it got too big and exploded and some of the people from that scene continued a bit more underground and with a heavier sound. In 2004 I discovered the superb compilation “Audio Output 3“. Where the first “Audio Output” (2002) proved to be mostly a gabber compilation (hardstyle techno, but too cheerfull for me), part 2 (2004) containing both gabber and “tekno” and therefor much more interesting, part 3 was a complete tekno / industrial techno compilation with some great extreme dance music. Still waiting for “Audio Output 4”, I now discover that another compilation series is put out by The Third Movement, a series that started between the first and second “Audio Output”! In any case, “Demolition part 10” is a 10 euro double cd with great Third Movement artists such as Promo, Peaky Pounder, N-Vitral, D-Passion and The DJ Producer, but also my favourite extreme techno artist Hellfish. Promising! To my big disappointment I hear a step back to the times of “Audio Output 2″ with horrible gabber tracks with those awfull ravy melodies and cheesy samples. Other tracks are great industrial tekno, but the Hellfish tracks are not all that good (neither is his last 12”), the highlights are definately the two DJ Producer tracks. It is funny how thin the line between good tekno and awfull gabber is. There are two tracks of “3 Steps Ahead” that start of in a promising way, but after an ‘announcement’ of gabber elements both tracks because simply horrific, awfull enough to give me a bad temper! I am afraid that the same ‘gabbery feeling’ is to be found in tracks of projects that I normally do enjoy, so do we witness a step back to the times in which hard techno sounded like shit? I hope not and there sure are great tracks here, but I guess I should make my own compilation out of this compilation…
Link: The Third Movement
