Fauna Flash ‎– Fusion (2001)

Style: Future Jazz, Drum n Bass, Latin
Format: CD, Vinyl
Label: Compost Records

Tracklist:
01.   Mother Nature
02.   Percussion
03.   Free
04.   Tel Aviv
05 .   Alone Again
06.   Referee
07.   Ten
08.   Morning
09.   Sunday At The Getty
10.   Question

Credits:
Bass – Raoul "Wei-Chi" Walton
Electric Piano – Michael Mettke (tracks: 1, 4 to 6)
Written-By – Christian Prommer, Roland W. Appel (tracks: 1 to 8, 10)
Mastered By – Stuart Hawkes
Design [Graphic Design] – Andrew Arnold
Photography By – Jörg Koopmann

Very few terms in the lexicon of music-journo speak raise a doubtful eyebrow as quickly or fiercely as that of "fusion." Often conjuring up memories of putrid jazz collaborations or frightening prog rock experiments, "fusion" is generally examined from a distance, like last week’s lunch. Not so this time around, here the brave German duo of Roland Appel and Christian Prommer step up to produce a mighty tasty, appropriately titled treat. As drummers and core members of both the Trüby Trio (with Rainer Trüby) and Voom Voom (with Peter Kruder), these guys are no strangers to experimenting with and merging a number of sounds and styles. They’ve taken their drum & bass roots to the next level with this album however, leaving earlier Fauna Flash releases in the dust. Fusion is aimed directly at the dance floor, but the arrow is far from straight. "Mother Nature," a thick, dripping and tripping slice of electro-dub, featuring Viennese vocalist Sugar B, is a great introduction to an album that moves successfully from jazz and drum & bass to house, funk, breakbeat and back again. The slinky, sexy and ironically giddy "Alone Again" seats ’70s disco next to nu house. "Ten" is a true schooling in contemporary dance music; it breaks, it boogies, it builds and commands all to shake our bodies down to the ground. Here, Fauna Flash has also created some of the strongest drum & bass tracks I’ve heard in some time. "Free" is pretty, jazzy and sumptuous, merging the feel of mid-’90s jungle classics with fresh, sweet bass drops, kicking percussion and a smattering of disco strings. Things get slightly darker during "Morning," where vocalist Marzenka simultaneously channels Grace Jones, Macy Gray and Leonie Laws over the rough riddims of this slow cooker. Trust the Compost camp to make fusion feel good.

Denise Benson / exclaim! 

Fauna Flash ‎– Aquarius (1997)

Style: Future Jazz, Drum n Bass
Format: CD, Vinyl
Label:  Compost Records

Tracklist:
1.   In The Dangerous Kitchen
2.   Serpico
3.   Experimental Error
4.   Kiss
5.   Top Secret
6.   Synopsis
7.   T.H.E.O.
8.   Blue Lotus
9.   Suited For City-Squiring

Credits:
Written-By, Producer – Fauna Flash
Artwork – Andrew Arnold

Fauna Flash, the drum ‘n’ bass component of Compost Records, drops some hard beats on their first release, Aquarius. The drum tracks on these numbers are quick and oftentimes are well-complemented by the bassline (check out “Serpico” for an example), but the first third of this album doesn’t quite have enough to distinguish itself. Later on, “Kiss” has some of the jazziness that Compost is known for, while “Top Secret” and “Synopsis” go for some spy movie excitement. “Blue Lotus” and “Suited for City-Squiring” are more or less a downtempo tracks. It’s an album worth investigating.

scoundrel  / discogs