Trevor Jackson
's
Metal Dance
sequel is as strapping as the first while featuring one of the oddest assortments of contributors, both expected and unexpected, gathered on one compilation. Several relatively known artists not included on the first volume are here, such as
Ministry
(the pummeling
Adrian Sherwood
production "Over the Shoulder"),
Front 242
(a creeping alternate mix of early track "Body 2 Body"),
Chris & Cosey
("Driving Blind," as relevant in 2013 as it was in 1984),
Liaisons Dangereuses
(a skronking highlight from the electronic body music and house progenitors' lone album), and
Visage
(the instrumental version of the lancing "Der Amboss"). A fair number of the selections will appeal most to post-punk/experimental shut-ins. These come from the likes of
Tuxedomoon
and
Conrad Schnitzler
, as well as the pre-
ABC
Vice Versa
, whose "Riot Squad" has much in common with the early releases of fellow Sheffield group
the Human League
. There's also the jerky
Plus Instruments
, featuring pre-
Sonic Youth
Lee Ranaldo
. A few acts -- unacknowledged electronic music pioneer
Doris Norton
especially -- fall well outside the confines of the compilation's subtitle. Odds are strong that DJs at the most underground '80s clubs weren't playing "Babies," made by
10cc
Godley & Creme
in sleazier-than-
the Stranglers
mode, or "The Conversation," the quirky result of a chance meeting between producer
Craig Leon
(
Suicide
,
Blondie
the Fall
) and the god of hellfire himself,
Arthur Brown
. Other highlights come from
YMO
Haruomi Hosono
associate
Hideki Matsutake
(as
Logic System
), Edmonton's
Psyche
, and
ZTT
Propaganda
. As with the first volume, the booklet contains extensive track-by-track notes that greatly enhance the experience. For anyone who owns compilations like
Black Box: WaxTrax! Records - The First 13 Years
Nine O'Clock Drop
Disco Not Disco
New Deutsch
A Secret History
The Minimal Wave Tapes
, both
sets are very necessary. ~ Andy Kellman