B12 Records was founded in 1991 by Mike Golding and Steve Rutter, two British electronic musicians who recorded under the name B12 as well as other pseudonyms such as Redcell, Musicology, and Cmetric. While much of the U.K. dance music scene at the time was focused on rave culture, B12 were more interested in the electronic music coming out of Chicago, Detroit, and Windsor, and designed the releases on their label to look and sound as if they were North American imports. Two of the duo's tracks were featured on Artificial Intelligence, Warp's groundbreaking 1992 compilation that helped establish techno as music for home listening rather than fodder for clubs or raves. The following year, the label released B12's debut full-length, Electro-Soma, as part of the Artificial Intelligence album series. When the album was given a long-overdue reissue in 2017, a second volume was also released, containing bonus tracks from Electro-Soma's compact disc editions, as well as several other tracks dating from the same period (many of which had been released as part of the duo's extensive B12 Records Archive series). Electro-Soma II is essentially more of the same, which still means that it's a fascinating listen for anyone interested in the early days of ambient techno. "Debris" is a lengthy sci-fi rocket-ship journey, which sounds tense and uncertain until its celebratory end section. "Bubbles" is a joyful piece of audio candy that the duo suggests might even be the techno equivalent of the classic Moog novelty hit "Popcorn." "Paradroid" comes closer to LFO's electro side, and balances shadowy textures with a playful slide riff played on a Juno 106. "Transient Pathways" slips into B12's darker, more alien side, with tattered, Aphexian snares, swirling atmospheres, and an unnerving, heartbeat-like thump. "Fear of Expression" is a more straightforward dance track, with a propulsive Derrick May-esque bassline and a sample encouraging the listener to face fear. "Eiyla," the theme song to the female lead character in an imaginary sci-fi movie, is cloudy and mysterious, with wet, snapping drums poking out from the track's thick haze of melody and texture. The original Electro-Soma is a bit more concise and focused, but II is still a worthwhile listen for anyone interested in diving deeper into the history of early-'90s home-listening techno. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi

1		Debris
2		Ecliptic
3		Ming
4		Bubbles
5		Kaxaia-80
6		Satori
7		Paradroid
8		Transient Pathways
9		Fear of Expression
10		Go with the Hiss
11		Eiyla
12		Static Emotion

	Like us on Facebook
	@SoundHound	Follow