Acid Rockers – The Robot Pop EP

The Robot Pop EP is an early vinyl single from Acid Rockers, their second on the obscure UK label AAA Recordings. This record is produced by Matt Buggins and Steve Walker, with additional co-production from someone named Lorry Bebb on Matrix. 1997 was to be the break-out year for the group, as they were signed to the prestigious Blue Room Released shortly after this came out. The Weird World / Messages From Jupiter single was released later that year, with a full album by the name of Mind Set to follow in Y2K. Although Acid Rockers soon became known for blending psytrance with breaks and drum ‘n bass, the group had not yet taken on a very psychedelic sound by the time this EP was released.

Matrix is rough and muddy, with a steady driving beat layered in tribal percussion. Mild acid lines and epic cinematic pads gain in strength as the track wears on. The climax feels muffled due to the weak production value, but I suppose it was decent enough for the time. This isn’t really psychedelic trance by any stretch of the definition; I find it more reminiscent of the “desert trance” popularized by DJ Brian with the popular Hardesertrance series of mixes released on Moonshine in the late nineties.

On the other side, Orion immediately floods the air with a deeply emotional melodic theme that goes straight for the heart. After more than a minute of introduction, a bouncing beat comes stomping in, and the track begins to build anew. Small hints of melody gradually coalesce, charging the atmosphere with electric energy. The surging emotional leads should inspire a powerful feeling of pure euphoric abandon in listeners attuned to the classic sound of mid-nineties epic trance. Unlike modern imitations, this has a genuine quality that is simply impossible to replicate, or it could be that I suffer from an acute case of nostalgia. Orion might not sound like anything else in the Acid Rockers discography, but it still works a little magic after an entire decade has elapsed.

The Robot Pop EP is a worthwhile addition to the collection of any old school trance fan. Most people nowadays would probably consider this terribly produced and unforgivably cheesy, but those scattered souls who still maintain an enduring interest in the old days will probably want to track it down. As obscure as this record may be, I have found that both tunes can be streamed from the Acid Rockers homepage (Feb 2007). It should not be too difficult to find for sale online as this vinyl never seems to have been widely appreciated. Perhaps it is too uplifting for Goa trance fans and too much of an oddball for regular trance fans? At any rate, I feel that it is worth looking into, especially for those who appreciate UK trance from this era.