Electro-rock classic from the first rays of techno's dawn. Juan Atkins, one of the Detroit godfathers, recorded these tracks with collaborator Richard Davis; the latter favoured more of an arena-rock approach, which meant that this seminal duo wouldn't last, but here it just seems to work, widdly guitar solos and all. For me the album tracks work best when at their most stripped back and minimal-electronic - Alleys Of Your Mind sounds like it could've been an early Mute single, not long after Warm Leatherette. El Salvador is another favourite, as I'm a sucker for a good vocoder.
Contrary to my usual practice, bonus tracks (largely post-album singles, although Cosmic Cars appears to be virtually identical to the album version) have been kept in place here. Quite simply, they're utterly essential, showing Atkins edging more and more toward his dream of a Parliament-Kraftwerk fission reaction that was about to explode into full-on Detroit techno.
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