Mouse On Mars, our fave Düsseldorfian IDM-hermits-cum-booty-moving-subversives, are releasing their first live document in their decade-plus career (save a limited-edition 7" and a handful of "quietly tolerated" bootleg CD-Rs). The nine tracks on Live 04 (Sonig) were culled from about 600 hours of live material recorded on their 2004 jaunts through the US, Japan and Europe, and plays out like a greatest hits set: reaching back to the ambient techno-dub of "Frosch" (off their 1994 debut Vulvaland), the prime glitch of "Diskdusk" (from their 2000 Thrill Jockey headfunk Niun Niggung) and recent hits like the crowd pleasing "Wipe That Sound" (off last year’s highly slept-on commercial bid Radical Connector). Live 04 is certainly more machine-man than man-machine, thanks to live drummer Dodo Nkishi's inspired robo-rock. Founding mice Andi Toma and Jan St. Werner hold down bass and keys, respectively, as well as the natural arsenal of bloopers, bleepers, tweakers and togglers. Due in October, the CD will include a Quicktime vid of "Wipe That Sound" and a 20-page booklet. www.sonig.com
