Here's something completely different - Israeli psytrance.
In the mid-'60s the Beatles became interested in Indian culture in an effort to expand their consciousness. They traveled to India to learn Transcendental Meditation, and even took lessons from Ravi Shankar (Norah Jones' father). Many of the songs in the White Album and Abbey Road were written during this time in India - where they meditated, drank coconut alcohol and took recreational drugs. Lennon credited meditation as his source of creative inspiration during this time. Yah, right!
Other hippies and musicians also flocked to India at around the same time - principally to Goa to pursue music, yoga, meditation and recreational drugs (Hashish was legal in India the early '70s). This gave rise to "Electronic Body Music" which helped dancers achieve a state of bodily transcendence using hypnotic, pulsing melodies and rhythms. The tracks generally start off slow, then steadily builds up the tempo, until it quickly dies off towards the end. This was Goa Trance.
It took its roots from psychedelic rock - bands like Pink Floyd, the Grateful Dead, and the Doors. As it evolved, more and more electronic instruments were used, as was synthetic rhythms and very complex layered melodies. Artists such as Kraftwerk, Nitzer Ebb and Frontline Assembly appeared and psychedelic trance or psytrance was born.
And that is a long-winded way to lead up to my next recommended album.
Infected Mushroom is an Israeli psytrance group formed in the mid 1990's that is one of the most successful groups in Israeli music history. They employ electronic as well as acoustic instruments, and complex synthesized bass (which is why I love what they do!!) Their music varies in rhythm, but most of their songs have a very distinctive resonating bass beat that pounds constantly but overlaid with with varying rhythms drawn from funk, techno, dance, acid house, and eurodance.
Their music is often what I call "deliciously inventive" and the recording quality is among the best of the genre. The vinyl albums are super, super rare, but their CDs are among the best digital music I have.
This album, IM the Supervisor (sometimes incorrectly labelled I'm the Supervisor) is among my most often played albums.
Infected Mushroom have released some 8 albums over the past 20 years. My favorite is the Legend of the Black Shawarma but I have never managed to land a copy of the vinyl in the last 5 years. Another great album is the double LP Converting Vegetarians. The track Avratz "on the other side" is a fabulous test of the quality of the bass reproduction of your system.
Mono & Stereo friend Gary Koh of Genesis Advanced Technologies, Inc.