aking up where the relative ambience of PS I Love You and PS You Love Me left off, Why I Love Life collects tracks from 1997 to the present of Kid606’s career. Stripping himself of the bravado that made The Action Packed Metalist... and Down with the Scene impossible to talk about without mentioning the person that made them, Why I Love Life seems to be a release, which finally can be taken on its own musical terms. This time the listener isn’t surprised that Kid606 can pull off ambience and is also not assaulted by gimmick or sheer aggressiveness. In fact, Why I Love Life can be stripped of all context besides the music. And that’s part of the reason that makes this release so great. That and...uh...the music.


The CD opens with a digitized whimper, which soon mutates into the rhythmic basis for a revolving melodic line. A harmony is brought into the mix, as a garnishing for the melodic sample moving the song along until both are taken away and only the whimper- amid other slightly distorted effects remain. The next song, “When I Want Something New” is the highlight of the disc. Mixing a rolling piano line and a slightly punchy drum beat, the song uses the crystal clear tones of the piano in direct contrast to the digital crackles and mishaps going on higher in the mix. Creating this interesting contrast is something that 606 failed to do in The Action Packed Metalist..., which lacked the cultural shock of pairing someone like Kraftwerk against Whitney Houston.


“Love It Like You Stole It” sounds exactly like a hip hop castoff from the PS I Love You release and is the longest and most fully fleshed of the tracks on this release. Ultimately, however, 606 eschews rock/pop song structure for a more laid back dance structure, in which the melody changes little along with a relatively static beat. The elements, however, are interesting enough to warrant the track’s six minute length.


“Something’s Not Right” repeats a simple synth line ad infinitum. Slight permutations befall it along the track’s length, but the track is relatively undistinguished aside from its aesthetic prettiness and relative emptiness. Since this release is merely a 3” CD, the tracks clock in at under 20 minutes.


While the relative shortness of the release may be a hindrance to many record buyers, the release is probably one of Kid606’s accomplished musical offering in some time. For someone whose kept his name continually in the IDM scene over the past two years, the Kid has certainly not done so because of his musical prowess, but rather because of his personality and destructive musical talents. Consider this perhaps changed...or, if these tracks are merely songs that have gone unreleased in the five years of his musical output because they wouldn’t befit any other release- hope for his sake that Kid606 may loosen up a bit, to include musicianship in his future releases. AS it is a necessary attribute to stay a relevant force in the IDM- and musical- community, in the end.