This came out in 2000 — or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
They may share their name with a Led Zeppelin disc, but that’s as close as this U.K. dance outfit get to rock ‘n’ roll.
What Presence presents on All Systems Gone is a style known as deep house — a cross between trip-hop and disco that’s smoother and less dubby than the former and more song-oriented than the latter. Simply put, it’s mellow ’70s disco dolled up in today’s high-tech finery. Not that there’s anything wrong with that; after all, it’s worked just fine for Air. It works equally well for Charles Webster, Presence’s guru, who spins warm dark grooves that have the chilly tempi, muted beatboxes and subatomic bass of Tricky’s work with Massive Attack. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that former Attack diva Shara Nelson is behind the mic for much of this CD, gracing Webster’s squishy synths and knob-twiddling with her dreamy, heaven-sent tones. Thanks to her presence, Presence is mandatory.
