Underworld Album: “Athens”

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful late night type album. Few lyrics, mostly instrumental. Music from a number of periods and genres that flows together perfectly, almost as if it were by the same band. If you know Underworld's mellower stuff you know the frequency this lives in -- mellow, nocturnal, still quite rhythmic, danceable at times. Nocturnal especially. How do you describe it? Psychedelic, trip hoppy, electronic, jazzy. I'd want to play it at a party late at night with the lights down very low. Skittery acoustic jazzy drums that you can sometimes dance to; low key electric piano and organ, deep bass, samples, the odd sitar, low-key horns. Obviously this varies depending on whether it's a seventies track or an 2000's track, yet it all blends nicely.

Underworld says their goal in collecting this music was to highlight music that had inspired them especially with its musicianship. Nice balance here between mood, groove, subtle instrumentation, musicality, highly skilled playing.

Pitchfork, I noticed, gave this a mediocre review -- apparently based on their dissatisfaction with the personality of Underworld, the band. That seems totally irrelevant to me, as it's a compilation with only one Underworld song proper, that's a rarity, and a good one, that fits in completely with the Alice Coltrane, Roxy Music, Mahavishnu Orchestra, etc. Only one of these tracks had I ever heard before (Roxy Music track that was used in Velvet Goldmine), and I'm glad to have discovered all these bands, old and new.

First off, I must say I've been a fan of Underworld since "Change the Weather". I've stuck with them and loved every one of their releases right up through "Oblivion With Bells" and, while their style has changed some over the years, they have consistently put out excellent music.

For the most part, "Athens" is no exception. It is, however, quite a departure from previous releases as most of the tracks are by artists other than Underworld. I was a little unsure of what to expect since I hadn't heard music by any of these other artists ... but I have been pleasantly surprised. Don't get me wrong, I love jazz ... but that wasn't really what I was expecting from Underworld. And jazz this is, there's no doubt about that.

Underworld is about the only artist whose CD's I will buy without even a second thought. That's what I did here, hence the surprise. The music on this CD is definitely more jazz than techno. But it is definitely some of the best jazz going. I've learned about several artists who are new to me and I will definitely be checking out more music from them. The late Alice Coltrane is an excellent example - I've loved John Coltrane's music for years, but for some reason never listened to Alice's recordings from after his death. After hearing her track on this CD ("Journey in Satchidananda"), I'm definitely checking out her recordings. So too, I'll be checking the other artists featured on this CD.

Now, on top of including many jazz artists who are new to me, Hyde and Smith have included two new tracks of their own ("Oh" and "Beebop Hurry"). Both of the new Underworld tracks are top shelf. "Oh" especially is very reminiscent of previous releases. And, while "Beebop Hurry" is a little more fusion/jazzy, it is all Underworld.

Overall, I am very happy to have purchased this new release by Underworld. So, you might ask, why did I only give this FOUR stars? Well, I guess because I would simply have preferred more tracks from Hyde and Smith. The other artists/tracks are great - but I do love Underworld ...

I am a huge fan of Underworld, and I was a bit disappointed to find that they only have one track on this CD. However, listening to it a few times, it really grew on me.

If you are an Underworld fan, this CD is a must. Just a great compilation of various artists and alot of bass. Love this CD.