Following 2010's triumphant Omega (MPM 008CD/LP) album that saw Detroit techno legend Robert Hood envisage the 1971 film The Omega Man as a techno science fiction opus, he now translates the suspense and tension of Charlton Heston's last man on earth battle for survival into the frenetic energy of his own new live show. In 2011, Omega comes Alive. "When I began to put together ideas for The Omega live show, I wanted to bring together elements that would of course, reflect the movie Omega Man. I thought why not include a few past recordings, such as 'Unix,' 'Side Effect,' and 'Minus' but with a post-apocalyptic sound. The idea was to simply stay true to my roots and to represent the sci-fi essence of the movie's theme. I added some unfamiliar elements such as 'Bells At Dusk' and 'Minimal Minimal,' as well as James Ruskin's re-interpretation of 'Alpha.'" On Omega: Alive, Hood takes the raw elements of the originals and builds them into a tense and pulsating live show that propels Omega into a new light. Opening with new track "Bells At Dusk," Hood builds over a sparse drum pattern before a scattershot piano riff announces the unmistakable kick sound of the minimal master. "Run" keeps up with soft pads and then Hood drops one of the album's key tracks with the staccato-strobe flash of "Alpha" as he works the original into a mesmerizing and melodic, string-inflected monster. Then we have new track "Minimal, Minimal," whose hypnotic refrain could well be a call to arms across the world's dancefloors this summer while Hood also re-works classics like "Who Taught You Math?," "Unix," "Minus" and "Side Effect" into his unique rhythm of vision. Finally Hood wraps the Omega story up with three bonus tracks including brand-new track "Atomic." This is Omega: Alive. The saga continues.
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