Extremely ambient music that's more influenced by the smooth, flowing melodies of groups like Tangerine Dream than by the bizarro sampling freneticism of much of the mid-'90s techno scene. Far more peaceful than many of bassist/producer Bill Laswell's wilder ambient excursions, listening to Decoder is like a soundtrack for one's blissful dreams of being able to fly. Soaring on gentle, breezy melodies that cradle listeners like a cloud, the music takes them on a kinder, gentler auditory journey. Perfect for meditation, relaxation, or simply lounging about on a quiet Sunday afternoon, this album has the subtle power to totally alter one's state of mind. ~ Bret Love, All Music Guide
Tracks
Track Title
Composers
Performers
Time
Dead Drop
Jeff Bova, Alex Haas
Cypher 7
Piece of Blue Sky
Jeff Bova, Alex Haas
Cypher 7
Dream Spiral
Jeff Bova, Alex Haas
Cypher 7
Conspiracy of Silence
Jeff Bova, Alex Haas
Cypher 7
Ladder of Lights
Jeff Bova, Alex Haas
Cypher 7
Credits
Bill Laswell (Programming), Bill Laswell (Engineer), Jeff Bova (Arranger), Howie Weinberg (Mastering), Aldo Sampieri (Design), Cypher 7 (Main Performer), Alex Haas (Arranger), Rob Soares (?), Ernst Haas (Photography)
Like their more common alias Technical Itch, the work of Darren Beale and Mark Caro as Decoder skirts the leading edge of progressive drum'n'bass, incorporating the moodier elements of jump-up and techstep with a nod toward drum-twisting junglists such as Dom & Roland and the Penny Black label. Although the duo have deepest roots in the late-'80s hardcore breakbeat scene, their material both apart and together has tended toward the darkside, combining dense, unsetting atmospherics with complex, bruising drum patterns and deep subbass groans. In addition to Decoder and Technical Itch (the latter coming from their Bristol-based Tech Itch recording studio), Caro and Beale have also recorded as Kutta (for Rough Tone), T.I.C. (for Back2Basics), and Alpha Proxima (for Au Toi).
The pair's earliest tracks came toward the peak end of the U.K. hardcore scene; both Beale and Caro were noted DJs, with Beale's recorded work as Orca adding to his notoriety. Introduced by a mutual friend, they released their first record together as Plasmic Life on Bizzy B's Brain Records, and by the early '90s were moving away from the conventions of hardcore, following breakbeat into the less static realms of darkside and hardstep jungle. Still only a part-time collaboration, the pair's partnership deepened after Omni Trio's Rob Haigh heard a Tech Itch track on Kenny Ken's Kiss FM show, leading to their signing with Haigh's home-base Moving Shadow in 1996. The pair produced a number of singles as Technical Itch for the label that same year, with scores of tracks as Decoder and T.I.C. continuing to appear on their own and other labels, marking the pair as one of the more prolific (and increasingly influential) of the new crop. A 1998 Decoder full-length was their first LP out of the gate, though Tech Itch's Diagnostics followed one year later on Moving Shadow. ~ Sean Cooper, All Music Guide
Starting his career in 1991 using various aliases creating a some oldschool hardcore tracks such as the huge '4 AM' which was one of the anthems of 1992.
He continued fine tuning the deep jungle sound under the Orca and Koda aliases on Lucky Spin and its sister label 'Deejay Recordings', creating the epic 'Tranquility to Earth' in 1994.
It was n 1995 he first used the Decoder pseudonym pioneering the dark or 'tech step' style of D&B, often on Mark Caro's label 'Tech Itch Recordings'
1997 saw the release of Decoder’s ‘Decoded EP’. The release went on to become one of the most played tracks in the US’s drum and bass clubs and achieved press recognition with a number eighteen placing in N.M.E’s ‘Vibes Singles Of The Year’ chart.
Decoder was appearing across various labels. Breakbeat Culture, Tech Itch Recordings, Hard Leaders, 31 Records and Audio Couture were some of the labels that were to feature Decoder’s popular style. Decoder was also supplied Peshay with his production skills. His name appears many times on Peshay’s ‘Miles From Home’.
Darren’s next release, the ‘Encrypted EP’, released in 1998, peaked at number three in Fab & Groove’s ‘Rollers Top Ten’. The ‘Encrypted EP’ along with ‘Headlock’, ‘Deception’ and Decoder’s collaboration with Mark Caro, ‘EKO’ ensured the artist was here to stay. By the end of the year Decoder had ammased enough material for an album release. ‘Dissection’, the album, appeared on Hard Leaders and went on to receive critical acclaim in the industry. Throughout all this, Decoder was responsible for remixes of tracks like Photek’s ‘Rings Around Saturn’, Adam F’s ‘Dirty Harry’ and Alan McGee’s ‘The Chemical Pilot’.
Decoder’s talents needed another outlet to allow him to realise his potential, and with that came his latest project entitled ‘Kosheen’. Most notably Kosheen has been responsible for the track ‘Hide You’. A song that has occupied many sound systems across the country and reached a number one chart position in several European territories
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