About

You know what else sounds surprisingly contemporary? The brutal, ugly kick drums of Vainio's first, self-titled Pan(a)sonic EP. This band, whose name eventually changed to Pan Sonic, was Vainio's lifetime project with Ilpo Vaisainen. The duo perfected what I've often described as "the sound of electricity itself," but early on, they were more aligned with techno, maybe even hard house, than they'd probably like to admit. And the EP will probably stun any casual listener of the duo. "Muuntaja" ("Transformer"), with its Thunderdome-ready kick drum, all lead-footed and distorted, chased by the usual electrical sounds. Over the course of ten minutes it becomes an abstract barnstormer, with Reese basslines, 808 woodblocks and the kind of high-pitched, ear-splitting notes that would become a trademark of later techno projects like Planetary Assault Systems or, later, Shifted.

Vainio and Pan Sonic have always been best at live shows, which makes even brutal tracks like "Muuntaja" interesting over a ten minute runtime. The flipside, "Murtaja"—this time, "burglar" or "hacker"—offers a bridge towards later Pan Sonic records, with a broken kick drum pattern and behind-the-beat percussion that sounds like stucco being knocked off a false ceiling with each thrust. Things get dubbier, and more volatile, across the track, but Vainio and Vaisainen never lose sight of that diabolical kick drum, chasing the dragon in a far more direct way than they ever would again. Hard techno fans, take note: this shit was brutal in 1994, and it wasn’t even called gabber. — (via Andrew Ryce)

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Mika Vainio (1963-2017), was based in Oslo/Norway, and published solo recordings under his birth name and under a series of pseudonyms including Ø and Philus and, together with Ilpo Väisänen, as Pan Sonic (formerly Panasonic). 
In the beginning of the 80's Mika Vainio played electronics and drums as part of the early Finnish industrial and noise scene.

His solo works are known for their analogue warmth and electronic harshness. Be it abstract drone works or minimal avant techno, Vainio was always creating unique, physical sounds.

He released on labels like editions Mego, Touch, Wavetrap and Sähkö and has been producing among others with Alan Vega of Suicide, Haino Keji, John Duncan, Stephen O'Malley, Merzbow and Bruce Gilbert. — (via Artist)

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Label: Sähkö Recordings
Format: Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, Reissue, Remastered, White Label
Reissued: 2026 / Originally Released: 1994
Genre: Electronic
Style: Techno

File under: House / Electro / Techno
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