Vague Terrain Recordings - A Viable Alternative to Actual Sexual Contact

A Viable Alternative to Actual Sexual Contact is the first release from Vague Terrain Recordings and the seventh in Piehead's subscription series. Before I penned this review I checked and there are copies of this CD-R left. It's my opinion that there really shouldn't be as it's limited to 311 copies and features a well-know electronic duo from San Francisco, who have collaborated with Bjork. Oh, and they record for Matador. And they recently released a limited live CD available from www.brainwashed.com/matmos

I picked this up quite a few months ago and I still love it. The duo, Chase Cambridge and Nick Peterson, originally created this for a soundtrack for gay pornography, primarily fetish oriented, and it uses quite a bit of dialogue between tracks too.

It appears that they've just decided to groove on this one. There are rolling beats and rhythms, hi-hats a plenty, sprawling bass lines, splinters of guitars and chunky electronics. As I suspect porno music doesn't need to be interesting soundwise the music isn't over worked or too refined. A lot of it is pure groove, and almost downright house music. 'Baby, Don't Make it Too Interesting' being a prime example, although it's, uh, fun to hear those boys moan and pant! Elsewhere 'The Rose Bud Opens' is so grooving and downbeat, 'In The Master Bedroom' is supremely funked-up. The squelchy electronics of 'Fist Power', with its soaring guitarlines and hyper-persussion is just plain retro.

It is certainly one of the best electronic albums I've heard this year. No cutting edge sounds, no chilled ambience just unadulterated groove and sometimes, I guess, that's all you really need.

Stockport's finest V/VM are the latest act to feature in the Piehead series. For more information go to www.pieheadrecords.com