The act known as Waldeck is the work of one Klaus Waldeck, a producer for Vienna's Spray Records, home to work by Kruder & Dorfmeister and Count Basic. Waldeck's work is similar earthy downtempo, though many of his productions reflect the recruitment of vocalists, similar to Massive Attack. After contributing a track to the Spray compilation The... [+] Read More

The act known as Waldeck is the work of one Klaus Waldeck, a producer for Vienna's Spray Records, home to work by Kruder & Dorfmeister and Count Basic. Waldeck's work is similar earthy downtempo, though many of his productions reflect the recruitment of vocalists, similar to Massive Attack. After contributing a track to the Spray compilation The Eclectic Sound of Vienna, Waldeck released his debut full-length Balance of the Force in 1999. Along with an American distribution deal through E-Magine, an accompanying remix album was released in the United States as well. Who Is Waldeck, his second LP, was released in fall 2000. His electronic daydream continued with The Night Garden, issued in spring 2002. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide [-] Hide

After dissolving his Sabres of Paradise project and label, UK dance-don Andrew Weatherall set up the tripartite Emissions label group and launched his latest, perhaps most prodigious musical venture, Two Lone Swordsmen. A collaboration with Emissions engineer Keith Tenniswood, 2LS was formed in early 1996. The group speaks the same language of... [+] Read More

After dissolving his Sabres of Paradise project and label, UK dance-don Andrew Weatherall set up the tripartite Emissions label group and launched his latest, perhaps most prodigious musical venture, Two Lone Swordsmen. A collaboration with Emissions engineer Keith Tenniswood, 2LS was formed in early 1996. The group speaks the same language of warped, downtempo grooves as much previous Sabres work (particularly "Smokebelch" and "Wilmott"), but opts instead for a syntax of minimal electronics and taut, brittle electro-funk for structure and guidance. The group's first full-length release, 1996's The Fifth Mission, was a whopping double-CD/triple-LP, both preceded and followed by additional EPs of new material ("Tenth Mission" and "Third Mission"). A few months later, the group issued two additional LP-length releases (both remix albums under the title Swimming Not Skimming, although the CD and LP versions sported different tracks), and by the end of 1996 had racked up no less than a half-dozen remixes (including Slab, Alter Ego, Sneaker Pimps, and David Holmes). The heavy release schedule continued through the rest of the decade, with an assortment of LPs (1998's Stay Down, 2000's Tiny Reminders) and mini-LPs recorded via a new deal with Warp. They returned in 2001 with the Further Reminders EP and delivered a remix collection, Peppered With Spastic Magic, and From the Double Gone Chapel, an album inspired by post-punk and electro, in 2004. ~ Sean Cooper, All Music Guide [-] Hide

A slight return to experimental electro after the downtempo breakbeat of their EP work during 1999, the second Two Lone Swordsmen full-length for Warp also explores the minimalist side of techno and harks back to the early-'80s synth-funk Andrew Weatherall championed on his Nine O'Clock Drop mix disc for Nuphonic. Except for a few tracks of... [+] Read More

A slight return to experimental electro after the downtempo breakbeat of their EP work during 1999, the second Two Lone Swordsmen full-length for Warp also explores the minimalist side of techno and harks back to the early-'80s synth-funk Andrew Weatherall championed on his Nine O'Clock Drop mix disc for Nuphonic. Except for a few tracks of free-form ambient wallpaper, Tiny Reminders is pretty hard hitting, at least for Two Lone Swordsmen. The beats are less brittle, and though the catalog of crazed effects is still in full force, they're carried along by the forceful drum programming instead of acting on their own. "Neuflex" begins with a skeletal breakbeat rhythm track, a near-classic pattern in electro circles, though the patented 2LS formula soon warps the production with a stunted bassline and precise, high-pitched acid effects. (Variations on that same bassline reappear throughout the album, with excellent results.) With haunting synth and a swift, precise drum program bedrocking harsh German vocals, "You Are..." will also sound familiar to electro fans, though as usual Weatherall and Tenniswood's extreme care with their productions makes for a fresh look at familiar sound. Tiny Reminders is far too messed-with for most dancefloors, but another intriguing listen from one of techno's best experimentalists. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Two Lone Swordsmen is another project involving Andrew Weatherall, who has consistently proven himself equally talented with production and composition; Stay Down is not as rock-oriented as much of his work, taking its cues instead from dub and ambient soundscapes, but without abandoning Weatherall's C-86 and Manchester house roots. Stay Down's... [+] Read More

Two Lone Swordsmen is another project involving Andrew Weatherall, who has consistently proven himself equally talented with production and composition; Stay Down is not as rock-oriented as much of his work, taking its cues instead from dub and ambient soundscapes, but without abandoning Weatherall's C-86 and Manchester house roots. Stay Down's fusion of all four influences is nothing short of amazing, taking largely electronic sounds into areas far more composed than the typically repetitive club-oriented releases that dominate some areas of the genre -- rather than leading electronic sounds down the path of their own conventions, the album shapes them into compositions that could just as easily be performed on organic instruments, meaning that the use of intricate production and sound manipulation is really just the texture of the recording, rather than its raison d'etre. It's an approach that's not used as often as many listeners might wish -- and as Stay Down once again demonstrates, it's an approach that typically makes for excellent albums. ~ Nitsuh Abebe, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Though it comes from a previously unheard producer, Balance of the Force certainly begins on a high note, with the down-tempo soul of "Defenceless." While Waldeck himself takes the keyboards (both electric and standard piano), the deep groove of what sounds like a live drum set frames the yearning vocals of Joy Malcolm. It's that rare thing in... [+] Read More

Though it comes from a previously unheard producer, Balance of the Force certainly begins on a high note, with the down-tempo soul of "Defenceless." While Waldeck himself takes the keyboards (both electric and standard piano), the deep groove of what sounds like a live drum set frames the yearning vocals of Joy Malcolm. It's that rare thing in electronic circles: the perfect integration of vocal track and production, with both pulling equal weight to set the mood. Amidst a beautiful, effortless transition, Waldeck moves on to "Spy Like an Angel," with male vocalist Brian Amos doing much the same as Malcolm did one track earlier. Either of these voices appears on all but two of the tracks here, the exceptions being the eerie, cinematic instrumentals "Slaapwagen" and "Moon." Fellow downbeat maestros Kruder & Dorfmeister help out on production for the sublime "Aquarius," and except for the slight reliance on a previously trademarked sound, Balance of the Force stands as one of the most quietly beautiful records of vocal trip-hop -- just slightly behind masterpieces like Portishead's Dummy and Massive Attack's Mezzanine. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide [-] Hide