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Mute is, without a doubt, the world"s most eclectic record label. They release
underground dance music, the wild rock of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion,
they have been Moby"s home long before you ever heard of him, they are independent
label that gave us the world beating Depeche Mode and the pop extravagance
of Erasure, the electronic assault of Add N to X and they have given us Holger
Hiller. On first listen to this album it"s hard to tell if this is the work
of daft buggers or genius. On repeated listens, it becomes clear that it"s
both. At times, it could be Aphex Twin at his most frenzied, at other times
it morphs into a drum "n" bass assault. It burps, booms and blasts. At times
it roars with stuttering Wagneresque pomp ("Micki Mouse") and it others it
descends to avant-ambient madness ("Once I Made A Snowman"). Holger Hiller
could easily make dance-floor classics or accessible marijuana-music, but instead
he ploughs his own furrow and pleases himself, rather than the masses. Of course,
it is f***ing odd, but I think that is the point, and you can"t say fairer
that that. Probably.
 the producer Trevor Horn's most famous works are collected here on a double CD collection. How can you define the work of Trevor Horn? Many associate him with Frankie Goes To Hollywood (he produced all their work) and the Buggles (his one appearance in front of the camera for "Video Killed the Radio Star" - although looking at the band in that video, their claim seemed unlikely at the time). However, this collection takes in all sorts from Simple Minds to Godley & Crème, Shane McGowan to Lisa Stansfield, ABC to Pet Shop Boys, Grace Jones to Propaganda, Leanne Rimes to TaTu and, of course, Art of Noise. It's hard to see what any of the above have in common apart from Trevor. The most important point about this collection, though, is not really a celebration of the legacy of a studio boffin, but the fact that it sounds brilliant when you stick it on when your friends come round. There's some pop, some rock, some underground dance music, hip hop (even if is Malcolm bastard McClaren) and a ton of classics. It's a compilation that constantly twists and surprises and never lets you down. You could get deeper, you could get more analytical and start discussing the significance of the producer as an auteur, but why bother when you can get smashed and dance to "Relax" by Frankie? |
