MODEL 500

Juan Atkins' first full-length album from his Model 500 nom-de-plume hasn't quite had the fanfare that a release on, say, his spiritual home R&S might have provided. No matter - Digital Solutions may sport a shonky moniker but it's replete with the usual trademarks of sparse electro-beats, burbling synths and spacey effects to sink a starship. Digital Solutions has more in common with 1995's debut Deep Space than the disappointing follow-up Mind and Body - this is a good thing. Electric Night is a killer track in the traditions of Huesca or I Wanna Be There, although perhaps not as anthemic, while both Storm, The Groove and the title-track have enough minerals to demand repeated intake. Occasionally Atkins oversimplifies matters with too much drudgery (Station - too much guitar widdling) but overall, Digital Solutions is a deft jam.

This review also appeared on Flipside Reviews

Paul PLEDGER
15/04/2015