Carl Craig & Moritz Von Oswald
Recomposed

Epic album.

Classical music meets techno, techno becomes classical. Away from the experimentalism of Hawtin, Warp, Neo-ambient, idm, Gas. The techno contained in this album does not transfigure, it doesn’t change bpm nor does it indulge in hedonistic avant-gardism. It’s techno, pure Detroit-style 4/4 kick drum, interspersed here and there with sections of wind instruments (I don’t say ambient because it means everything and nothing).

This time, the novelty is not in the contents, there is no revision of the production apparatus, what we have here is a subtle, sly revolution that could perhaps be synthesized in two words: professionalism and seriousness. Seriousness because the fragments of "Bolero", "Rapsodie Espagnole", and "Bilder Einer Austellung", although I have actually only heard the first mentioned piece, are treated with extreme respect and with the awareness, by the two artists, of handling a matter too important and, if we want, sensitive (let's not forget that it was Deutsche Grammophon in the flesh and label that commissioned the work). Professionalism because the work done in the production phase is nothing short of impeccable. Not a single sound appears artificial or out of place, and the attention given by the two techno sacred monsters (or it would be better to say of electronics as a whole) to the smallest sonic detail is frankly alarming.

The (de)compositions, mostly rather long with a peak duration in the final 14 minutes, interlock fluidly and (almost) imperceptibly, making the album quite homogeneous and, despite the minimalism of these (certainly not the sound), not excessively hard to listen to as it might be (and it is, if you allow me) an album by Gas. The operation reminds me, with the due content differences, of what Matthew Herbert achieved regarding jazz music. In this album, one can perceive the same care not to denature either genre, the same ability to merge two apparently distant genres to create something new and timeless. In this album, there is all the passion of two men who have already made the history of electronic music and who, with their vision, continue today to break down the barriers dividing various genres. It seems to be aimed yes at all those who love techno, but also and above all to all its detractors, because what it contains is "simply" classical music seen in a techno light by two great minds, and as much as this may appear "simple" and repetitive (repetitive was also Bolero, in fact) compared to the original counterpart, it never turns out to be trivial or banal. And I really apologize if that's not enough.

ps: but now I want power-metal/drum'n'bass fusion!! I want to go overboard!:P