Planet E
1992
Intergalactic Beats
About This Album
Intergalactic Beats compiles the inaugural recordings Carl Craig released on his Planet E label along with a few others representative of the Detroit label's direction at the time. Each of the nine featured tracks date from either 1991 or 1992, and half are produced by Craig as either Shop, 69, or Piece. These Craig productions certainly stand out, and not only within the context of this collection but also with the producer's overall canon, particularly the two 69 productions, "Ladies & Gentleman" and "My Machines." Originally released on the 4 Jazz Funk Classics EP in 1991, these two monumental tracks showcase precisely how individual Craig's creative vision was at the time, synthesizing the sci-fi sounds of the early techno era with Superfly-style '70s funk samples. Relative to Craig's contributions, the other producers featured here -- Balil (better known as the Black Dog), Future/Past (Kirk Degiorgio), Eevolute (Stefan Robbers), Hani, and Dark Comedy (Kenny Larkin) -- don't sound quite as groundbreaking, but their contributions are still very much in line with the otherworldly machine-made sounds Planet E specialized in at the time. Above all, though, Intergalactic Beats should be taken not so much as a collection of individual contributions but rather as a whole. Craig bookends the album with an intro and outro and sequences his own productions carefully throughout. The Detroit producer would later take his label in other directions, broadening its parameters and continually incorporating new sounds, yet this is a key reason why Intergalactic Beats sounds so fascinating years later. Craig certainly had a particular style he aimed for back in 1992 when he assembled this collection, and he engagingly accentuates this style with some brief yet wonderfully ideological liner notes that provide a glimpse into his world at the time and commemorate the dawn of a grand era for Planet E. ~ Jason Birchmeier , All Music Guide
Track List (try tracks 1,2,3,5,6 and 7)

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