The electronic underground scene is doing quite well, thank you. The American Merck Records label has used its relatively slim resources well by signing many innovative artists in the growing electronica genre. One of them is Finland native Jaakko Manninen, alias MD, who has widened his horizons since his previous release. Indeed, Appelsap was a nice production but, even for a debut, its concept seemed too fragile and Manninen appeared to be seriously lost, just experimenting with electronic sounds. Thankfully, Between Gaps remedies the situation, or more likely just places MD further from his previous position. Between Gaps has an enormously wide soundscape. It's not just combining new age IDM with traditional ambient; you can actually hear the influences of psychedelic music, hip-hop, and different kinds of techno. The whole CD seems to work pretty well. Even though there are musically weak moments, the songs are linked nicely and the atmosphere works all the way through. Between Gaps is a very nice example of music that doesn't need lavish production and literally millions of dollars in funding to be a success.
© Antti J. Ravelin /TiVo