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RAW 42 review by Sal,September 1999

ambient, minimalistic, experimental. this is in the now, one of the good guys who always produces something interesting or elegant or different in each of his tracks. a fusion of minimal sounds and melody blended together into songs of skillful and deceptively simple design. always worth the listening experience. tick tack with its subtle and funky wah wah synth emphasis and ambient click clack percussion has a retro touch but a groove style all it's own. much like a classic david gilmour lead gone techno, yum. a light bassline floats through the background adding a base of jazzy freeform style which nonetheless is firm and rigid enough to provide an excellent foundation when necessary and it isn't always necessary as this track drifts through many changes without ever losing its coherency. beautiful string pads lay over top powered beats in subphonic, an ethereal trek into the ambient electronic field. i can't quite get a handle on the timing and must say it's delicious in its deviancy from the norm... lovely to hear someone pull off an effective and eccentric beat and do it so well, this just makes the song. with the string and choral pads floating in and out throughout the track, in the now has created a beauty of percussion and sound. it takes almost 2 minutes to fully get going but once it does, subphonic is a pleasure and a joy of subtle ambience and so added to the raw42 top songs list. frantic ticks, claps and clicks provide the percussion for nostalgia (surface noise), a minimalist adventure into experimental ambience and how elegant it truly is. a minimal piano melody occasionally plays to string pads which float on a cloud of frenetic but light beat. it's not so much the melodies or percussion that makes in the now such a good artist but the sounds and effects he uses and the manner in which he brings these, sometimes contrasting, elements together with minimal layers but masterful effect. another musical delight to add to the top songs list.

RAW 42 review by Alex, June 1999

in the now creates a unique style of ambient electronica combining a variety of styles and sounds. almost experimental in nature, the songs still retain a good grasp in melody and rhythm while stepping out onto new ground. this is a different approach and it most often works quite well. fluffy kitten is a very danceable track. the beat remains the same throughout this 6 minute song although it's retriggered and repeated at various times in the song. a simple and constant bassline keeps the melody on track while the drums go haywire. the high pitched sweep pad played throughout the song adds a strange dimension to an otherwise straightforward techno song. there's such a variety of sounds in this song that it's hard to cover them all and because it's a fairly long track, you don't really notice the vast amount of sound and effects on first listen. very well done and nicely thought out (fluffy kitten??). in transit (march of the beeps) follows much the same path of the previous track and leads me to believe in the now has carved out his own unusual niche and style. i like an artist who knows what he can do and does it well. too often bands attempt many styles without a real understanding of the genre and it doesn't normally work out. in the now creates music that is right for him. he's a good electronic musician who knows how to take a variety of sounds and mold them into a coherent song without bothering to stick to the hard and fast 'rules' of electronica. i had trouble downloading the going fuzzy mp3 from the uk site so instead chose to review 5 by 7 and am glad i did or i would have missed out on the cool time signature and drum track of this song. as i mentioned before, it's extremely hard to make a good song in a non-standard time signature but here is a perfect example of one that works and works very well. a mixture of drum 'n bass and ambient, the drums are impossible to put your finger on apart from the fact that you're always a beat behind in your head, in the now takes it one step further and constantly changes the drums. the ambient portion of the song comes in the shape of a beautiful pad progression while the drum 'n bass element messes with your mind. this song has been added to the top MP3 songs list for its excellent take on time signature and superb execution.

Review of "Subphonic" by Pzuto.

The bass at the beginning is amazing! It was making my keyboard vibrate. The strings flowing into the bass is also a great addition. Very emotional. Then it really all comes together. Electronic sadness. Extreme clarity. You have to listen to this!

Review from Fabrik Nos's Electronic review site,June 1999

Fluffy Kitten begins with some very cool scratchy, gritty effects, being joined by a happy-go-lucky drum n'bass rhythm. There are several instances where it seems that the song jumps, either a problem encoding or perhaps it was an intended effect. Either way, it didn't make the song go any smoother. The nice piano leads give an air of ambience to the song, as does the high-pitched synth that comes in about 1:45 to the song... sounds like something that would be used in an old video game or movie such as Tron. The comparison to Aphex Twin- especially Selected Ambient Works era- must be made, as the song takes on an ambient, light, and flowing feeling, and then suddenly switches to a high speed collage of effects. All in all, a good attempt at that d&b/experimental combination, although a bit drawn out (at 6:18 long) and bearing a bit too many resemblances to techniques made famous by Aphex Twin. Rating: C+ In Transit (March of the Beeps), while being the owner of a pretty cool song title, falls prey to the same fate as Fluffy Kitten. The merging of d&b and experimental is done smoothly, yet many of the same techniques are used, and there's only so much of that subbass that one can take. However, In The Now can lay claim to using very catchy and original synthesizer parts (even if they were originally samples), which more than make up for the somewhat repetitive and annoying effects. What I like about this track is that IF one must compare it to Aphex Twin, it draws from the best elements... both the older, ambient era, as well as the newer super-speed era. A combination like this is much more enjoyable than only listening to one of those styles. So, this track receives a B- Lastly, Fahn! approaches experimental ambient from a more dancey angle. As in the previous two songs, Aphex Twin-esque techinques are implemented, but hardly to the same degree. This track relies more upon original methods and compositions, which I found highly enjoyable. Right when I thought, "Hey this is just another Aphex Twin wannabe," Fahn! made me change my mind and has caused me to appreciate In The Now a bit more. Definitely a recommended track from this genre, Fahn! receives a A because of its solid programming and good use of effects and solos. Well done.