“A very good collection of 12 tracks with swirling rhythms on circular sequencing in nicely danceable patterns”
1 tamed in Apeland 5:20
2 1985 4:38
3 the Message 5:05
4 Fukushima 5:49
5 Pershing Meets SS-20 6:20
6 Tschernobyl 5:35
7 fun fun fun 4:07
8 Epigone 7:03
9 Insanity (Sequencer 14) 6:09
10 Tik Tak Toe 6:05
11 Kismet in code 5:33
12 deserted 6:20
(DDL 74:22) (V.F.)
(Techno-E-Rock & New B.S.)
And the madness goes on… Between his last opus on the pangs of nuclear power and WORLD OF APES (2, there was the incident at the Fukushima plant. And nowadays, it is the threat of a potential Iran -Israel conflict which hangs over our heads. Like World of Apes I, the rhythms of Moonbooter are wrapped up in melancholic ambiences and full of restraint. Rhythms of lead in envelopes of sorrow! But there is still juice in the explosive rhythmic structures of Bernd Scholl who knew so well how to merge his energetic music in the ethereal ambiences of Berlin School. The boss of MellowJet Records did not give up his sequences nor his pulsating rhythms, but he balanced his energies in order to offer a bewitching EM. An EM where soft techno and upbeat coexist harmoniously in structures where the resemblance is only illusory of boom-booms and bang-bangs which are getting lost in impulses of synth layers in mode waltz for dance. Review of an astonishing album that we did not expect to be in this way ...
Samples from an American radio station during the prohibition years open tamed in Apeland. Unlike World of Apes 1, the music on this album is not inundated with sound samples. Moonbooter wanting to let more room for his music. Soft percussions and an oscillating bass line initiate a soft rhythm while crisscrossing lines of sequences roll like a carpet of marbles to tune to keyboard chords skipping under iridescent synth layers. Percussions fall and gently the rhythmic waltz of tamed in Apeland swirls under misty and jerky synth layers, tracing a mixture of soft disco and soft techno with a dreamy and harmonious beat. 1985 continues the slow rhythmic beginning initiated by tamed in Apeland with an intro which gallops on the back of sounds of gyrating suction cups, pulsating percussions and tssitt-tssitt cymbals. Feverish sequences gesticulate under synth layers which encircle a growing stationary movement. Other limpid sequences are added to this rhythmic canvas, dancing of their alternating strikes on a structure which dithers between the emotional outbursts of its violin strings before exploding with a heavy pulsating movement. The whirling sequences and resonant pulsations of Message plunge us into the unbridled rhythms of Moonbooter's repertoire. The rhythm is powerful, pulsating and hammered with heavy percussions/pulsations while feverish and spasmodic sequences flagellate a convulsive and hyper jerky rhythmic structure that a vocoder covers with a cold robotic approach. Fukushima is a beautiful electronic ballad imbued with a deep melancholy approach. The keyboard chords which jump in the opening weave a seductive oneiric approach which extends to the percussions provided with fine clicks. The rhythm then becomes fluid and marries an astonishing Asian approach with strange murky pulsations and chords which stroll in the groove of a flute with meditative breaths. It's exceptionally beautiful. It even has the scents of Tangerine Dream in The Atomic Season. The intro of Pershing Meets SS-20 takes shape like a science fiction tale with its synth sirens with apocalyptic tones. Fluttering sequences emerge between the arid breaths and the hoarse rumblings. They flit nervously, as if to escape a predator, while the title rushes to a stroboscopic rhythm with sequences and percussions which throw themselves in all directions. It's a huge well hammered heavy rhythm and it peels the paint off the walls, if the walls hold up of course!
After a dark monasterial intro where chthonic choirs chant in a sordid void, Tschernobyl lives on mournful pulsations which croak on a latent circular rhythm. Melodious sequences, with a touch of Halloween in the melodic chorus, meander all around this rhythm which swirls softly and which preserves a static envelope, prisoner of the enveloping violin strings coming from the synth layers. fun fun fun is a nice Enigma's melody style which charms on a slightly hopping and sweetly swirling rhythm. The celestial voices are totally attractive! The slow and stealthy rhythm, emerging from a fauna of heterogeneous tones, Epigone progresses through the resonances of hoops and riffs of guitars rolling in loops under enveloping violins. Slow, the intro explores an atmospheric ascent on an indecisive rhythm before melting into a heavier phase, chiseled with sharp sequences and harmonized flute breaths which retain their candor in a rhythmic vision as heavy as static. Fine chords, like a solitary guitar, rock the introductory tranquility of Insanity (Sequencer 14). Impromptu sequences surround the melody which is enriched with reverberating synth layers and others more melodious. Another synth line gets in. It guides the undulating melody of a catchy harmonic chorus which leans on pulsating percussions, leading the title towards a curt and sharp rhythm where the layers of synths and limpid chords merge their harmonies in a very beautiful melodious finale. Tik Tak Toe offers a nervous and stroboscopic rhythmic structure which arches on a mesh of curt percussions and surging sequences to which are attached layers of synth to tones of sirens. The rhythmic and melodious structures are lively and quite arousing. There are overhung by a fusion of choirs and synth layers, with their solo forms, surrounded by lively sequenced streamers which scroll as fast as the pulsations boil. Kismet in code marries a little the same structure but with a more lightning rhythmic approach, whereas deserted ends WORLD OF APES (2 with this approach of melancholic ballad which nourishes the soul of this last opus of postapocalyptic rhythms from Moonbooter.
In the end, this WORLD OF APES (2 is a very good collection of 12 tracks where the swirling rhythms and the circular sequences from the rowdy universe of dance floors and of the upbeat rhythms of Moonbooter are trapped in transitory approaches with slow evolutions and turns more dreamy than feverish. The rhythms are catchy, even tying trance and/or techno approaches with oneiric approaches and Berlin School-style of electronic momentums.
Sylvain Lupari (March 08th, 2012) *****
Available at MellowJet Records