Spanners

Spanners takes the dense polyrhythms and complex melodies that Black Dog explored on Bytes and builds an engaging and endlessly listenable sonic maze for your enjoyment. At times it's a straightforward techno album, but in true Discordian fashion the styles are random and slippery; the 12 tracks, held together by short musical "Bolts," bob and weave through Latin, Arabesque, and even country styles, ensuring a surprise around every corner. Unfortunately, the Black Dog split up shortly after this album's release, with Ken Downie continuing the madness with a series of decidedly unmemorable albums, and Ed Handey and Andy Turner moving on to create further gems as Plaid. But their legacy remains: Spanners is an album for which the term "eclectic" doesn't quite do. It's simply a masterpiece. --Matthew Corwine