Xpander
DJs Sasha and Digweed are known throughout the world for their sublime mixes and clever choice of material popularized by theirNorthern ExposureCD series. Beyond the interminable techno and house of their contemporaries, S&D; have found some magic key with which they make real music out of monotonous dance-floor detritus. Their mixes breathe, travel, and reflect, making armchair listening a resplendent journey in the head. Those of us who would rather endure an evening withSugar Raythan get caught in some ear-shattering dance dungeon find solace in the mercurial, near shamanic sounds of S&D.; But can solo Sasha match the muse?Xpanderfollows the S&D; formula to a T, leaving you wondering who is the genie and who is the master in that partnership. Almost subliminally, the Sasha tracks "Xpander," "Belfunk," "Rabbitweed," and "Baja" unwind as much in the air as in your head. The beat, of course, is omnipotent, but Sasha adds touches of glowing ambient, experimental house, soundtrack surrealism, and trippy, Warpish techno. Remember that scene in2001: A Space Odysseywhere our hero, Dave, travels light years in a single moment, only to find himself looking at his own aged body eating eggs?Xpanderis the eerie modern soundtrack to a heightened aging process, one where the mind gets lost in the void while the body either shuts down or dances.--Ken Micallef