Released
1994
Label
Artware
Reviewed by
Michael C. Lund
Contact
Artware
Taunusstrasse 63b
65183 Wiesbaden
Germany
Tel: 49(0)611-52 41 33
Fax: 49(0)611-5 96 54
Last Edit/Update
24 March, 1999
De Fabriek
SAVE THE PLANET
Track Listing
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The strange Dutch musical collective De Fabriek released this monumental
concept album on Artware in 1994. Save The Planet features the
participation of about a dozen artists, and it is a work that, despite its division into
eight tracks (neither of which have been assigned a known title), is best experienced in
its entirety.
Intensely rhythmical in nature, the
more than seventy minute long program of Save The Planet is a vivid aural mosaic
that incorporates a broad spectrum of musical styles, ranging from moments inspired by
jazz and funk, to the more dominant industrial and electronic sounds normally associated
with De Fabriek. Integrated into this continuously evolving soundscape
are also a wealth of radio and film samples that, along with the plastic shifts between
musical genres, help to create the impression of a world -- or, global village -- pieced
together from an incredibly diverse variety of fragments.
The image that emerges, however, is
not necessarily a pleasant one. As the title suggests, the concern of the CD is -- as so
often -- the ills that plague our planet. Here are snippets of speeches by military
spokesmen, a sample of Clint Eastwood's brutal screen presence, another of the
icon of righteous violence himself: John Wayne -- in which he praises the
splendorous landscape of the United States, and the list goes on. Whereas the themes of
violence and environmental pollution -- as pounded home both by these samples and by the
brief texts and slogans in the CD booklet -- are hardly original, the way in which all the
diverse musical elements and samples have been smoothly weaved together makes for a
listening experience that is both rich and dynamic.
The CD exists in two different
versions: a standard jewel case edition, and an exclusive edition that comes in a gorgeous
sand-covered case. The latter is priced slightly higher and limited to 1000 copies, but
both versions are still available directly from Artware.
