The last thing Berlin needed during the fall of 2004 was the dawn of yet another fledgling minimal techno label, right? Right. Nevertheless, Vakant wasted no time in establishing its graphic and sonic identity, a look and sound built on peculiarly angled and placed shards. This mix, executed by two of the label's most talented producers -- Mathias Kaden and Onur Özer -- whips through 14 tracks and summarizes the first ten releases. Though the releases were contributed by only a handful of producers (Alex Smoke, the Wighnomy Brothers' Robag Wruhme, and Tolga Fidan round out the bunch), it's still remarkable that they remained uniform in nature without ever resembling retreads. Another reason why the tracks fall into one another so well is that Kaden and Özer did some editing work, but the disc is still mixed by hand and sequenced with an almost inhuman knowledge of how the tracks should be dropped in and out to optimum effect. These sharp, intense productions, while never without the club focus, are filled with no short supply of otherness. Transitions seem less like typical blends and more like sudden chutes, trap corridors, and invisible rubber walls. Rhythms switch tacks at a moment's notice, various percussive devices -- hollow tubs, lengthy scythes, serrated talons, trampolines stretched to the brink of snapping -- designed by alien life forms are swapped out every other minute. Save for the odd, fleeting keyboard vamp, none of the elements are melodic. Recurring effects are deployed at severe angles, and sounds bounce off one another in a seemingly happenstance yet perfectly organized manner. Bizarrely, the label's most distinct track of all, Özer's Twilight, is showcased for only 100 seconds. File this alongside Zip's Superlongevity (Perlon) and Andrew Weatherall's Hypercity (Force Tracks) as one of the great label-specific mix albums. [Videos for Kunstfehler and Schnittmenge can be viewed on PC/Macs.]~ Andy Kellman, Rovi

1		Kunstfehler
2		Nuance
3		Strange Attractor
4		Ilsa
5		Stekkrübe
6		Envy
7		Train
8		Twilight [Re-Edit]
9		What Can I Say
10		Abstract Prologues
11		Gizeh
12		Pelters
13		Circle Pit
14		[Untitled Track]
15		Kunstfehler [Multimedia Track]
16		Schnittmenge [Multimedia Track]