Solaris - Photek

Photek's (alias Rupert Parkes) second album sees him making a giant move away from the dark mathematical drum and bass approach of his debut album ‘Modus Operandi’. Where as this previous work has seen Photek lurking in shadowy alleyways twisting and distorting noir jazz breaks into new forms, ‘Solaris’ sees Parkes striding into the sunny uplands. Everything from the sleeve art featuring blurred pictures of palm trees and ...
...the dark side. However when an artist’s previous work has been touched by blackness it is very hard for them to fully pull away from such devilish delights. All this makes ‘Solaris’ a strange enigma of an album. Although it seems to be a million miles away from the urban decay and paranoia sonically created by Photek on his earlier work, ‘Solaris’ is still tainted by the musical demons that forged those releases. Underneath ...

SidneyJames 13.08.2001 · Read full review
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Review of Solaris - Photek

Photek have emerged with their third album 'Solaris' which is far removed from their drum n' bass beats, in fact only one track, 'infinity' could be classed as drum n' bass. The vocal talents of Robert Owens are used on the tracks 'Mine to Give' and 'Can't come down', both of which are the better tracks on the album. There may be a few housy tracks, but even in these pieces you'll find a lot of elements which are distinctly Photek. 'Terminus', the ...
...Photek knows how to create, building an excellent track which is, like many other pieces here, both serviceable for the dancefloor and for home listening. 'Junk' shows a completely new side, blending clanging percussion and acid sequencers. 'Halogen' and 'Lost blue heaven' offer heavily echoed, pounding trip-hop beats and peaceful melodies, but the strange atmosphere and menacing undercurrents set them apart from Photek's earlier ambient tracks such ...

nigelpm 27.06.2001 · Read full review
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Review of Solaris - Photek