Je Suis un Etrange Compilation

Artist: Je Suis Un Etrange
CD Title: Compilation
Label: Ronda
Reviewer:Matthew Johnson
Date: 11-19-05

For this compilation, French label Ronda has assembled a group of different artists, giving each the assignment of creating a composition from samples of a specific language. Although all of the tracks here fall loosely under the experimental techno umbrella, the actual approaches have turned out to be as diverse as the languages themselves. Some artists took the assignment fairly literally. DSCL’s “Mais Fait La Taire,” for example, is created entirely from muttered snippets of French conversation. Others take a different approach; Bleetch’s “Teach Me How” is dark and moody, with electronic glitches hovering at the edges of sampled string loops, and it’s perfectly evocative of Scandinavian bleakness despite containing only the occasional clip of spoken Norwegian. The moods of these compositions are equally diverse. Silencio’s “Tumbleweed” is soothing chill-out music, with hints of undecipherable English conversation emerging from piano loops, and Depatie’s “Men Fall” combines stony guitar atmosphere with a jazzy bass line. C.H. District’s “Speller” is darker, almost sinister, with sampled Russian speech chopped up and sprinkled over bells and beats, while Lucky R’s Portuguese-themed “Fonte Nova” evolves from laid back funk grooves into tribal chanting. Sun Plexus and Loner’s collaborative effort “Grua Telefonaj Tre Derri” approaches slapstick – you don’t have to speak Albanian to appreciate the comedy – while Xerak’s combination of Japanese conversation, futuristic lounge music, and warm electronic beats is faintly reminiscent of Pizzicato Five. This is a great introduction to some truly underground artists, and while each composition is weird in its own way, none of these tracks are painful or taxing to listen to, even if you’re not a diehard fan of experimental music. There’s a mixture of eccentricity and accessibility here that should particularly appeal to enthusiasts of Aphex Twin.

To read more about this compilation and other releases from Ronda, visit the label online at www.ronda-label.com.