MixTaste: //TENSE//

For the fifth MixTaste we back to Texas and asked one of the actual most exciting EBM progeny. The amazing //TENSE//are Robert, Mariana, and Jake. They perfectly balance physical and musical sensations. Robert Lane said about...
... "//TENSE// was born with dreams of resurrecting the forgotten WaxTrax! sound and has been producing the hard beats in his hometown of Houston TX for 3.5 years. I picture my music being played in dimly lit dance clubs...sweat breaking the ice, bodies contorting wildly, eyes closed and electricity in the air. I hope to evoke the feelings I felt long ago when I first tasted twisted metal and dirty bass lines on the dance floor, the first time I was handed a mix-tape with songs that would become a part of my being... //TENSE//...never forget the past, move into the future. This mixtape is not for cool points, nor is it a forum to flaunt my nerdy musical tastes...This is simply for fun. These are tracks that shaped me as a child, tracks that are attached to (probably) warped old memories. There are hundreds and hundreds of tracks that have helped mold me into the mutant I am today, but these are 11 special ones that I wanted to share. I really hope you enjoy...XO"

Download //TENSE// MixTaste

01. CCCP - American Soviets"
"I used to have this Memorex mixtape recorded off of local Houston radio that I would play while I hopped on the skate board on my parents patio in 1987..."

02. Nitzer Ebb - Join In The Chant
"1994, a mixtape made for me, a new anthem...the first time I heard this at the local underage goth danceclub I lost my mind. No one can deny the beat!!!! GUNS GUNS GUNS!"

03. Cabaret Voltaire - Hey Hey
"It was really really hard to just pick one Cabs song...these guys continue to amaze me every time I listen to them. How do two men make so many completely listenable tracks? If I was forced to pick one album to have with me on a desert island I really think it would be 'Crackdown', but for purely visceral in the moment dance your ass off pleasure I will go with a track off of 'Code'. This was my first Cabaret Voltaire piece of wax and years later I fall in love with it all over again every time I listen to it...and the Adrian Sherwood production? Fucking flawless... "

04. Front 242 - Controversy Between
"One of my favorite 242 tracks...I just spazz out every time I listen to this track. And the youtube video of them performing this song on some European television show??? Priceless. There are so many stand out 242 jams, but this one has a special place in my heart."

05. Absolute Body Control - Touch Your Skin
"Jumping way ahead into the 2000s...this was one of my first exposures to 'minimal'. A real eye opener and a great reminder that all you need is a good bass line, a kick drum and some vaguely sexy lyrics to break into a nice sweat...love this track."

06. Dana Dane - Nightmares
"This song used to freak me out when I was a kid. I used to buy these cheap ass rap compilations on cassette at the mall while my parents shopped at some department store or another. This chorus has been stuck in my head for 24 years...haunting."

07. Roxanne Shante - Roxanne's Revenge
"This was another tune on one of those mystery tapes that were lost long ago. I really wish I could find them all again. I have a particular memory of jamming this really loud in my grand-parents bedroom for some reason. I love it when they beep out the bad words!"

08. The Cure - Boy's Don't Cry
"I have vague memories of the red-eyed shadows dancing behind the young actors playing the Cure in this video...sitting in the living room and eating bowls of cereal waiting for my parents to wake up..."

09. Depeche Mode - Enjoy the Silence
"This video mesmerized me in 1990, back when MTV played music during the day and changed 10 year old boys lives..."

10. Nine Inch Nails - Head Like a Hole [slate]
"I still remember purchasing this cd single in 1993 at Best Buy..."

11. Hi Tek 3 - Spin That Wheel
"I always had a shoebox full of my favorite cassettes that I would tote around with me on summer vacations. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Part 1 OST was one of my favorites....1989 was a fun year...I frikkin loved Technotronic..."

Download //TENSE// MixTaste (11 tracks unmixed)
Bonus Track : //TENSE// - Redemption For You

You can ordered the //TENSE// releases here