Codec & Flexor
Tubed
Emperor Norton
German techno duo Codec & Flexor may use the Teutonic industrial electro-rock of acts like Kraftwerk and Nitzer Ebb as their reference point, but they come across as a far more lighthearted affair than what those comparisons might suggest. A hugely diverse album, the pair has taken it upon itself to translate the dark waves of machine music into valid pop music, but Depeche Mode or even The Faint they are not. Sure, there are some entertaining moments: the atmospheric digital metal funk of “Alert” being a weird highlight, the minimalist skipping breakbeat of “Crazy Girls,” the deep house-inspired “Let it All Out” and the pure techno pump of “Underwater.” Codec & Flexor have several good ideas go, with no song really repeating anything else on the album. However, afraid to delve further into their material, the songs reveal themselves to be one-trick ponies, being beaten to death by monotony. Some tracks avoid this categorization, but they are exceptions. Tubed is an album of good ideas going nowhere, and something of a disappointment.
Emperor Norton Records: http://www.emperornorton.com/
