Nitzer Ebb - 'Body of Work 1984-1997' (Mute) Released 05/06/06

Despite never becoming a household name and remaining firmly entrenched in the underground, it’s difficult to underestimate the importance of Nitzer Ebb to contemporary electronic music. While Kraftwerk are indisputably the forefathers and pioneers of the genre, in 1985 at the unfeasibly tender age of 16 Nitzer Ebb - Bon Harris and Douglas McCarthy - unleashed ‘Warsaw Ghetto’ and opened up new possibilities with their unique brew. Rhythmic and almost magnetic chanting coupled with brutal, repetitive electronic grooves were the cornerstone of their art. They brought to the surface that electronica could uncompromising, aggressive, emotionally wrought and challenging. Transgressing boundaries of dance and rock, Nitzer Ebb later influenced and sculpted the sounds of bands like Nine Inch Nails and The Prodigy just as much as esteemed techno producers Sven Väth, Richie Hawtin and DJ Hell.

This bumper double-disc collection ‘Body of Work’ is the perfect introduction to Nitzer Ebb for the un-initiated. Beginning with their breakthrough tracks ‘Isn’t It Funny How Your Body Works’ and ‘Warsaw Boy’, the sound is crude, unbending and direct all delivered with Beastie Boys-esque chanting. Ahead of their time and before ecstasy had taken its grip in the late eighties, Nitzer Ebb pummelled the listener with looping, hypnotising sounds like in the boisterous ‘Murderous’. As the album progresses, the duo’s sound becomes more honed, embodied by ‘Join In The Chant’ – a tech-tinged opus that is still the staple of techno clubs today. Despite at times being relentless and unwavering, tracks like the luminous ‘Come Alive’ and the ultimate guitar-led ‘I Thought’ (possibly the best track Depeche Mode never made) prove there’s a poignant, human side to the Ebb.

Barely waning in quality, ‘Body of Work’ is a comprehensive and vital insight into a defining act. Better still, for the aficionados amongst you, there’s a bonus disc of rarities and remixes to get stuck into. Nice.