I used to be a crybaby. Steaky, my then- new tekno friend would plug all sorts of heavy, repetitive beats into her stereo, pop some magic pills, and stare glassily at me as her hips began to sway. My eyes would well up as my sensibilities revolted at this mechanical sound-- the beats were just hammering all over themselves! Where were the lyrics, the guitar solos, the verdant ego and personality that had saturated every rock- heavy note I had consumed in my years? The pain... the pain...

Soon enough, with the help of plenty of recreational drugs, flashing lights and ringing ears, I felt a small click as my brain permitted itself to adapt to the cascade of pure, severe beats that slammed around the walls. I began to feel positively at home in parties like IT and places like Twilo, and though I was never a rave kid, the music began to sound like, well, music.

I mention this progression because Jim Masters' Ultimate B.A.S.E. 2 doesn't really belong in the stereos or headphones of the uninitiated. A 71- minute "continuous DJ mix" of pure, shiny metallic house beats, B.A.S.E. 2's got beats goin' forward, beats goin' backward, beats washing over one another, beats colliding, beats overlapping and beats pounding directly into thy cerebellum; it's all beats, my friends.

The record is admirable in its focus and pure severe determination, but not for those with pacemakers or any desire for anything resembling mellowness. Where many DJs (Sasha and Digweed spring to mind) tend to spin wax in cycles that go thru peaks and valleys, driving the musical intensity to a sweaty climax, then easing off before building to another crescendo, Masters holds the energy level at "high" pretty much continuously for the full duration of the disc. This proves to be both good and bad: it's good in that the energy never breaks, and if you throw this in after you've smoked some rock, you'll be all set; it's bad in that it makes for a rather flat musical landscape where only a few breaks really stand out among the endless hi-tek flow of pounding beat. Standouts include Masters' mixes of Adam Bever and Lenk's "Drum Code 1," Bushflange's "Toe Tapper," with its funk'arrific sound, and the horns in Luke Slater's "Stomp" provide a momentary respite. But all in all, Ultimate B.A.S.E. 2 is for the hardcore- hungry house- kidz only. Though I don't feel any tears springing to my eyes just yet.

-James P. Wisdom