20 Years Metroplex (1985-2005) CD

It's amazing how fresh and forward-thinking much of Juan Atkins' early material still sounds, nearly 30 years after it was first created. Take Cybotron's "Alleys Of Your Mind". Recorded and released in 1981, it's sparse electro beats and wonky electrofunk synths - clearly inspired by Kraftwerk and Conrad Schnitzler - sounds like it was beamed down from another planet, billions of years in the future. You could say the same for much of the material on this reissued Metroplex 20th anniversary set (first issued in 2005); from the far-sighted intergalactic hypnotism of Model 500's "The Future" and "Vessels In Distress", to the clanking proto-techno of Channel One's "Technicolour" and Inifiniti's rush-inducing "Game One", Atkins has consistently stayed ahead of the game.

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