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A producer's credentials for recording Detroit-styled techno don't come much better than John Beltran's. Based in nearby Lansing, Beltran worked with Derrick May (as Indio) and released several records on Carl Craig's Retro-Active label (as Open House, with Mark Wilson). And his ear for melody -- gained from a healthy enjoyment of world and new age music -- has given his productions enough of a bite to feature for such home-listening-slanted labels as Peacefrog and Dot (as Placid Angles). After releasing singles for American labels Fragmented and Centrifugal during the early '90s, he recorded his debut album Earth & Nightfall for R&S Records in 1995. The production on Earth & Nightfall was much more melodic than the usual R&S releases (or for that matter, the usual Detroit producer). One year later, Beltran's 10 Days of Blue LP for Peacefrog arguably bettered its predecessor. For 1997, Beltran re-upped his Placid Angles guise for an EP on the Swedish new-school electro imprint Dot, th...