Getting Even

The one thing Peter Kremeier will always have going for him is his ability to incorporate his love of jazz, funk, soul, and disco without ever being tripped up by blind-rapture reverence. Like Jan Jelinek, he's able to embrace his European sensibilities and his admiration for other cultures at the same time, rather than taking clumsy stabs at channeling the spirit of something like Roy Ayers' "Running Away." On Getting Even, his first album in four years (a handful of singles intervened), Kremeier continues to find room for all of his inspirations while remaining as evasive as ever -- he seems to have made a conscious decision to produce a full-length completely distinct from 2000's Belong, not to mention all other 2003-2004 full-lengths released by his peers. Only "Tango Acido," coming off like a stern approach to Environ-style disco-boogie, has an overt allegiance with other active producers. The beats hit a little harder, often without sacrificing the sensitive properties of earlier high points like "Taste Not Waste," "Depth Control," and "Synkro"; "Warriors (Rock)," from a 2002 single, breaks from this with an in-place beat that batters and stammers, shards of guitar that shock, and a bassline that pounds. On closing track "A Blood Sample," featuring improperly named vocalist Miss Anesthetic, Kremeier abandons the dancefloor for spaced-out downtempo. The album, solid as it is, would've benefited from a couple more tracks in this vein. ~ Andy Kellman|

テック、クリック、エレクトロでディープな作品など、遊び心溢れるハウス・ミュージックを送り出すジャーマン・レーベル、プレイハウスから4年ぶりに登場したロウソウルのセカンド・アルバム。前作に比べてサウンド・プロダクションは格段に質を上げ、メランコリーな美しいメロディーとジャストなタイミングのリズム・センスが光るエレクトロ・ミニマル・ハウス作品に仕上がった。心地良い音空間が広がる秀作です!
bounce (C)新崎 康英