Melody AM

CMJ - "...A funky, shimmering mass of soundtrack-y electronica, soul influences and other lush moods....The album is a grand and varied listen, packed with intricately woven sheets of keyboards and samples..." Rolling Stone - Included in Rolling Stone's "50 Best Albums of 2002" - "...Ethereal European electronica radiating the warmth and coziness of acoustic folk without the cornball New Age-y bits..." Entertainment Weekly - "...A stream of pastoral, boutique techno..." - Rating: B Rolling Stone (12/26/02, p.108) - Included in Rolling Stone's "50 Best Albums of 2002" - "...Ethereal European electronica radiating the warmth and coziness of acoustic folk without the cornball New Age-y bits..." Entertainment Weekly (11/1/02, p.70) - "...A stream of pastoral, boutique techno..." - Rating: B CMJ (10/14/02, p.7) - "...A funky, shimmering mass of soundtrack-y electronica, soul influences and other lush moods....The album is a grand and varied listen, packed with intricately woven sheets of keyboards and samples..."

'Melody AM' is the debut album from Nordic leftfielders Royksopp. Taking influence from 70's analogue sounds, film scores and modern beats, 'Melody AM' is a melting pot of musical ideas.|

Chilled-out or downbeat acts swept through the electronic scene during 2001 and 2002, prompting dozens of identikit compilations, all conjuring up images of exhausted clubbers returning home early in the morning and enjoying a cup of tea or a smoke after a hectic night out. And although downtempo electronica had always been largely album-based, most of these trackmasters didnt do much on the full-length front. The Norwegian duo Royksopp, however, displayed a careful hand with the boards on their 2001 debut Melody A.M.. Royksopp balances the haunted atmospheres of Boards of Canada with the more traditional "songwriting" sensibility of downbeat specialists like Groove Armada or Koop. The opener is proof enough, with a chunky bassline undergirding the spooky, ethereal refrain from Bobby Vintons "Blue on Blue" recorded by some long-forgotten vocal chorus. Theres much beauty on Melody A.M., very textured and imaginatively produced to sound like few of their contemporaries; its saying much to even admit that Royksopp is occasionally the equal of such otherworldly acts as Boards of Canada or Goldfrapp. They seem a bit too indebted to the gauzy synths of 70s soundtracks, but there are a few good exceptions, like the distinctly 80s sense of artificial ethereality to the closer, "40 Years Back/Come." Picking up the ball right about where Air dropped it after Moon Safari, Royksopp produced one of the most intriguing downbeat albums of the year. ~ John Bush