(01.13.06) I don’t know very well the output of Bpitch Control, but I constantly followed the releases of two artsits that I found fresh and amusing, namely DJ Feadz and Modeselektor. While I am still waiting for a CD full of raw breaks and blunted hip-hop by the French mad scratcher Feadz, the Modeselektor duo recently put out this Hello Mom!, which sometimes fulfills my expectations with party grooves, but in some places gets a bit anonymous. The start is very good though, “Dancingbox” is a jumping hip-hop number, made irresistible by the hiccuping lyrics of TTC, “Die Clubnumber” is a massive technoid breakbeat piece and “Tetrispack” is a slow paced, minimal and bleepy stomper that represents perfectly the weird attitude of Modeselektor. Shortly after there’s “The Rapanthem,” that uses the beat from O.D.B.’s (R.I.P.) “Got Your Money,” but I can’t decide if it’s a tribute, a cover, a bootleg or whatsoever. It doesn’t matter, because the track just after will get immediately your attention and you’ll feel the urge to crank the volume up: “Kill Bill vol.4” it’s a four-to-the-floor techno hammer, fuelled up with electrified synths and bass, the perfect tune to turn upside down the audience on a dance floor or you own car, blasting it in your stereo and terrorizing the neighborhood. “Ziq Zaq” calms down the atmosphere with a smooth Detroit beat and mellow synths, and while not so aggressive as “Kill Bill,” it’s either very danceable and enjoyable.
When the tunes are bouncy and sparkling, Modeselktor’s music is lovely, but when they go too IDM I begin to lose attention. It’s the case of “Vote Or Die” and “Earth,” two placid tracks in the vein of Plaid, they’re
indeed nice but they break the funky flow I was enjoying before. “Fake Emotion” instead, while being dubby, has those crunchy beats inside that keep the head-nodding going on. Obviously, the addition of the mighty Paul St. Hilaire is a wicked bonus. Unfortunately the following tracks are not much special to me apart from “Silikon,” another explosive tune with a heavy ragga beat and some grimey lyrics courtesy of Sasha Perera. It’s out of my control, really, after the first freaky tracks my mood is set to partytime and I would want more and more… it’s not a bad album, on the contrary, I would recommend it without hesitation, I just think that Modeselektor should stick on what they do best, because they’re very good at it. Keep your eyes peeled for the remix EP of this album; it features an unbelievably smashing rework of “Dancing Box” by Sleeparchive.
Hello Mom! is out now on Bpitch Control.
