Some Other Country
On the other hand, absurd and completely
hysterical, the fun Italian pop’n’roll band “Les
Fauves” sings about an unhappy young love: “You’re
just a child, you have time to forget.” Well then!
The singer’s nasal voice is unique, “an unusual guy
who works for a blood transfusion service, that
rubbed off on him,” says Brun. Swayzak illustrate
this very angry song in a way that is both hymnal
and strange and pack the whole thing with a lot of
pop appeal. Monty Python goes techno...
At the beginning of “Claktronic” a girl says “up in the air.” And everything starts in a playful, beepy way. But step by step an expressively played flute is added and so is a xylophone and a heavenly chorus. Framed by a razor-sharp high hat and bouncy bass, the piece’s airy arrangement develops, opening onto an almost sacral level.
We can only be amazed by so much courage for intense feelings and for so much fun in experimentation. With “Some other country,” James Taylor and David “Brun” Brown deliver what to date is their most expressive album. Fasten your seat belt, it’s a well-directed assault on the doors to our perception. “See, they return,” say Swayzak at the end of the album, quoting Ezra Pound. Yes, Swayzak are back, and how!
Tracklisting:
01 Quiet Life (feat. cassy)
02 So Cheap
03 No Sad Goodbyes (feat. richard davis)
04 Distress And Calling
05 Smile And Receive (feat. cassy)
06 Claktronic
07 Silent Luv (feat. les fauves)
08 Pukka Bumbles
09 By The Rub Of Love
10 They Return
At the beginning of “Claktronic” a girl says “up in the air.” And everything starts in a playful, beepy way. But step by step an expressively played flute is added and so is a xylophone and a heavenly chorus. Framed by a razor-sharp high hat and bouncy bass, the piece’s airy arrangement develops, opening onto an almost sacral level.
We can only be amazed by so much courage for intense feelings and for so much fun in experimentation. With “Some other country,” James Taylor and David “Brun” Brown deliver what to date is their most expressive album. Fasten your seat belt, it’s a well-directed assault on the doors to our perception. “See, they return,” say Swayzak at the end of the album, quoting Ezra Pound. Yes, Swayzak are back, and how!
Tracklisting:
01 Quiet Life (feat. cassy)
02 So Cheap
03 No Sad Goodbyes (feat. richard davis)
04 Distress And Calling
05 Smile And Receive (feat. cassy)
06 Claktronic
07 Silent Luv (feat. les fauves)
08 Pukka Bumbles
09 By The Rub Of Love
10 They Return
Swayzak – “Some Other Country”
!K7215CD
release date: 27th August 2007
Swayzak are their old selves again! James Taylor’s fatherhood sabatical is over, David “Brun” Brown managed things during his absence anyway, and now they return together with their album “Some other country.”
Swayzak’s new opus sounds mature and full. On the Brits’ fifth album, what counts is quality, loud showy effects are superfluous. Swayzak have always loved their echo pedal, but in their tenth year of existence, their dub-techno attains a new, compositional dimension. “We’re more interested in atmosphere,” says Brun. “The album is darker and heavier – a reaction to all that minimal stuff that has become a type of mainstream.” Indeed, the pieces on “Some other country” aren’t just a trip to another country: little worlds unfold.
Can a diamond get goose pimples? Perhaps it can, if it is confronted with a deep jewel like the opener “Quiet Life.” With the vocals of Berlin producer and DJ Cassy (Panorama Bar/Berghain), Swayzak stage a moving, room-filling question-and-answer game. It’s similarly the case in “Smile and Receive,” where her clear voice mixes with strange noises and gentle bell ringing.
Swayzak’s favorite singer, Richard Davis (kitty-yo, Punkt), is also back. In a gentle and mysteriously melodious voice, he tells in “No sad goodbyes” of how he corrected a faux pas. Then these bright, crystal clear moments, the type one sometimes experiences after an all-nighter, resonate along with it. And it’s thanks to Swayzak if a tension is built up here, which could capsize at any moment, thereby keeping the listener on his or her toes. Grand cinema, but no kitsch.
!K7215CD
release date: 27th August 2007
Swayzak are their old selves again! James Taylor’s fatherhood sabatical is over, David “Brun” Brown managed things during his absence anyway, and now they return together with their album “Some other country.”
Swayzak’s new opus sounds mature and full. On the Brits’ fifth album, what counts is quality, loud showy effects are superfluous. Swayzak have always loved their echo pedal, but in their tenth year of existence, their dub-techno attains a new, compositional dimension. “We’re more interested in atmosphere,” says Brun. “The album is darker and heavier – a reaction to all that minimal stuff that has become a type of mainstream.” Indeed, the pieces on “Some other country” aren’t just a trip to another country: little worlds unfold.
Can a diamond get goose pimples? Perhaps it can, if it is confronted with a deep jewel like the opener “Quiet Life.” With the vocals of Berlin producer and DJ Cassy (Panorama Bar/Berghain), Swayzak stage a moving, room-filling question-and-answer game. It’s similarly the case in “Smile and Receive,” where her clear voice mixes with strange noises and gentle bell ringing.
Swayzak’s favorite singer, Richard Davis (kitty-yo, Punkt), is also back. In a gentle and mysteriously melodious voice, he tells in “No sad goodbyes” of how he corrected a faux pas. Then these bright, crystal clear moments, the type one sometimes experiences after an all-nighter, resonate along with it. And it’s thanks to Swayzak if a tension is built up here, which could capsize at any moment, thereby keeping the listener on his or her toes. Grand cinema, but no kitsch.