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For ages we have been waiting for the Recloose, a.k.a. Matt Chicoine, debut album. In the past few years he let us hear the sounds that were in his head by way of three singles on Planet E, a mix album on Eskimo, his membership of Carl Craig's intergalactic space jazz combo Innerzone Orchestra, a series of remixes, and a couple of unforgettable DJ sets at festivals like Ten Days Off (Belgium). However, we wanted more. We missed him and his sounds.
But listen: there sounds a bit of music, and a voice. "Welcome to my world," the guy sings. We realize it's Recloose's Ain't Changin' that we hear, and right at that moment he grabs our hair and drags us into his realm. It's a world carefully built from bleeps, beats, and samples from other planets, made unrecognizable through electronic manipulation by the man himself. While Ain't Changin' is playing, the mood is shiny and happy, and our legs start to move automatically with the uptempo rhythm. When Ghost Stories starts, we don't stop moving, but the mood does change slightly. It becomes darker. Thunderclouds take shape in the air in the form of synth pulses. We get a bit scared.
But fortunately we spot an old friend: It's Can't Take It, Recloose's third single. The funny bleeps sound familiar, and Dwele's voice still fits in nicely with the fat bassline and the scratches over the pulsating beat. The intro of Kapiti Dream (named after Kapiti Coast, the New Zealand town where, apparently, Recloose now resides) reminds us a bit of Underworld, and the stomping track that kicks in afterwards invokes images of a hypnotizing landscape where the sea rushes quietly and yellow and purple flowers grow in the dunes. After a good eight minutes, Up and Up starts, gently but poignantly, with a stuttering beat and still-trippy synths, later on enhanced by a stuffed-up funk bass and dreamy sounds — echoes from the eighties.
We relax a little bit, and the world around us starts to move slower with us as Procession begins. A voice sounds from the distance — a voice clearly with Jamaican roots. The sun starts to shine even more, and slowly we fall asleep. But there is no time for sleep. Another old friend comes to wake us up and invite us to the dancefloor. It's Get There Tonight, still one of the funkiest tunes of the last couple years. Jazz drums and Afro-Cuban percussion are supported by an electro-ish rhythm, eighties synth lines, and an incredibly swinging bass. This is what disco will sound like in the future, surely. A future that is further explored in Permutations. Computers bleep all around, or so it seems. A rhythm starts, and we start to dance again. But then another rhythm sounds, and it doesn't seem to be in synchronicity with the first one. Confusion grows as suddenly a saxophone blows. The two rhythms form another one. Is this jazz? Is it techno? Is it . . . fusion? We stand still, our heads in turmoil, listening.
Then, a lady comes to take us away. She sings to us with a soothing voice over a relaxing beat. This song is called M.I.A., and the unrest disappears immediately. It's a fantastic piece of soul. Once again, completely recovered from the confusion of two songs ago, we succumb to the gently swinging Absence Of One. We recognize this track from back in the day; it accompanied Can't Take It on the b-side. The dubby rhythm massages our tired legs and aching temples. We close our eyes and drift along with the dreamy synths and the gentle bass waves. With a loud buzzing sound we wake up.
What is that?
Fear chills our hearts.
Where are we?
What do we hear?
Fear turns into sadness as we realize what it is: It's the ear-splitting sound of silence. The journey through the World of Recloose has ended, and we are left behind with nothing more than a few beautiful memories.
http://www.kindamuzik.net/recensie/recloose/cardiology/1483/
Meer Recloose op KindaMuzik: http://www.kindamuzik.net/artiest/recloose
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