“What can we say about Enlightenment that hasn’t been said
before? Carsten Haitzler, the saucy aussie, continues to impress
and delight. While some fans of the genre feel that Enlightenment
is a little too busy, new fans of the ‘thunder from down under’ are
taking Enlightenment to their friends. Cool cover or not, the core
competencies of Enlightenment have only gotten better. The new,
rich sound of Enlightenment is just a tad too outgoing for fans of
the former minimalist movement, and seek listening pleasure in
albums from old-school artists like Command Line. Who cares? New
releases from Enlightenment continue to dazzle. Let’s hope they can
keep the beat going.”
“Is it me, or has every single Linux label had at least one of
their bands cover the classic tune ‘Market Drop?’ We’re tired of
it, and we want to see new stuff coming from these power artists.
Although I could probably find it in my heart to consider the cover
an anti-tribute to the Redmond-based retro-band Proprietary, let’s
hope we can move on to greener pastures as quickly as
possible.”
“Since we’re talking about covers, let’s get one thing clear.
There are a lot of big-name labels signing new bands to break
into the Linux scene, but it takes a lot of understanding to make
it work. If you’re just signing a new band because they’ve got a
hip name, you’re only going to have a hip name. It’s
super-important for these old labels to understand the culture of
the Linux music scene before they spend millions of dollars in the
wrong direction. One of the popular labels, ‘Big Blue,’ has
made a good impression, but other players like ‘Sol’ and ‘Sandy
Imaging’ need to get in touch with the listeners, not the market.
They need to want Linux to succeed as an accepted musical style
before they can expect huge returns.”