Jega - 1995 (2016) Lossless

Said to have been recorded in 1995, these highly valuable archival recordings of Manchester's Jega show a producer who has always operated on the fringes of electronica while maintaining a truly individual sound. Recorded straight to tape as you would in those days, these tracks pre-date his now classic 1998 album Spectrum and still sound as futuristic as his music did back in the late 90's. There is a certain eeriness to this music, it sounds almost out of time with itself and while the touchstones of ambient works 85-92 Aphex and the more sedate BOC shadows the music, the overall sound is one of uniqueness. Drifting between electro sketches and gabba workouts to more drill 'n' bass (remember that!) excursions the overall feel of an LP of sketches more than a full flowing structured album is apparent, but this does not matter when the sounds are so well formulated. A vital piece of history from Manchester's long running tradition of bedroom electronic scientists from Martin Hannett to Muslimgauze and a testament to a bygone era of electronica that sounds like a future we have yet to fully realize or arrive in.