Search - Towa Tei :: Technova

A saxophone, a piano, and Neil Armstrong are in a bar...

Adam Carroll | 06/10/2000

(2 out of 5 stars)

"No, you haven't heard this one before. As disparate as those elements may sound, Towa Tei has actually made a very smooth, jazzy, and catchy song with "Technova." I'm not really sure why Neil Armstrong's voice, describing his flight into space, is appropriate here - but nestled in the loungey depths of this song, it actually works.If only the remixes of "Technova" were as surprisingly good. There are some standout tracks; the Opaz Remix Edit is actually the original song redone from scratch, with a little funk thrown in for good measure. George's Journey keeps things interesting with a snazzy little piano riff, though it bogs down near the end. Unfortunately, the rest of the mixes fail to deliver. Wink's Building Groove reduces the song to simple "thump-thump-thump" dance, and the Coded Vibes Mix butchers Bebel Gilberto's sublime vocal contribution, turning the phrase "Technova" into a sluggish, slowed-down soup to accompany equally dismal instrumentation. Folknova is basically the original song stripped of production - every element of the song is clearly heard. This isn't necessarily good, though, because it showcases the extremely poor quality of the samples. As a final blow to the value of the CD, both the LP version and the radio edit appear here, yet the latter's only difference is that it is slightly shorter.In short, "Technova" is a very good song. This single, though, just drags on needlessly - push the stop button after the first two tracks and you'll have heard all that this CD really has to offer."

Impressive Re-Mixes

jeremy B. | France | 02/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Bossa, House, Acid-Jazz and more...A rich maxi-single from Towa with sensual vocals from Bebel Gilberto. JOSH WINK's BULDING GROOVE is an absolutly brilliant hard-house experience, robotic and hypnotising."