As reviewed by me in January 1995:Summary: Hollow techno from Australian industrial band SNOG.After collecting half of Extreme's catalog I've grown quite fond of their releases. The label has always known quality ...C-Schulz...Muslimgauze...Shinjuku Thief... in fact although I have passed on opportunities to pick up a couple of their other CDs, I have never thought of their selections as lacking in any way. Until now.Using samples obviously stolen from Depeche Mode and Muslimgauze, the first two tracks of Soma's Hollow Earth attempt to mimic sequencer-driven techno with Kraftwerkian overtones. Mechanical, compressed, and with dominant synthetic zaps, bleeps, and sampled percussion in desperate need of some effects processing, half the tracks on the album leave me feeling like I'm listening to an industrial band's first tries at making techno. It never works, guys. Stick with what you know best. FORTUNATELY... on some of the other tracks, they do stick with their forte. It's when they try to be ravey that they flop, at least on aluminum. Perhaps their live gigs in native Australia are better.If Extreme wanted to get into the techno side of ambient, they really should have waited for something more in line with the established sound of their label. I'll hold off on saying much more about this until I hear back from Roger Richards, the label's chief. I sent him a ton of questions, the answers to which will hopefully make a good interview. [I eventually posted the Roger Richards interview online.]As far as I am concerned, Soma are not what Extreme is all about, and I sincerely hope they don't represent a new direction for the label, after so many fantastic releases over the last 3 years.

Next to Zul'M by Muslimgauze Soma Hollow Earth is was a landmark release for this label. Yes it has the 90s techno influence but its darker, more intricate and very intelligently composed. The musicians on this release are of high caliber and this release should have received much more attention alas it was not commercial so there lies the lack of marketing. Even today the music breaths its sinewy like tentacles around the curious listeners ears with exotic percussion and sequenced electronica buzzing the audio spectrum. This is REAL intelligent techno if the phrase must be used and worth obtaining by anyone remotely interested in real classic 90s electronica. Their followup lacked the grit and dark edges of Hollow Earth but is still worth checking out its just that they really raised the bar with the first release!

This is a great overlooked 90's release. The style is a true hybrid of electronica, at times feeling like early sci-trance, but with a lot of unexpected breaks and transitions - engaging arrangements of lush and crisp sounds. A recurring bassline/mechanical drum theme pushes forward. Then there is also also a strong ambient element throughout, lots of twists and turns with a somewhat sacred vibe, but also great electronic bounce thanks to ample sequencing/synth techniques. I imagine the Soma studio was quite nice in 1994! And today it's nice to hear this combination of crafty arrangement, lush orchestration, and retro-futuristic drive. I myself overlooked this one on my first listen years ago, and have since discovered a hidden gem of Australian electronics.