(03.17.07) Jörg Burger resurrects the mix-cd from terminal-trainspotting syndrome with the initial entry in Faith Recording’s Collector’s Series, titled Popular Songs. Burger, here as The Modernist, brings a little more spontaneity to his 62 minute mix, with some less-than-soothing transitions, reminding us all that he is human and can make mistakes, small as they may be. But Burger’s track selection is unimpeachable, a veritable tour of the Cologne sound as it has morphed from its Basic Channel roots into something singular in a sea of micro-genres.
Popular Songs doesn’t build up to one defining point of awesomeness, instead it builds momentum and then releases it briefly, before picking up again. Closer Music’s “1-2-3 No Gravity” starts the proceedings with a dubby beat and a pulsing electro synth, which pours itself into Mikkel Metal’s mesmerizing head-nodder “Microho.” Seamless editing brings in Repair’s too-housey “Late Night Moves,” appealing to the dance floor with a diva vocal line evoking Sasu Ripatti’s Luomo project. Burger appears under another pseudonym, this time Triola, with an exclusive track, “Freifeld,” the first peak. At only 78 seconds, it is a tantalizing glimpse of Burger’s talents at higher-bpm productions, bringing to mind the epic techno or Orbital’s “In-Sides,” but condensed to the core, functioning more as an awkward transition to Autosoundmadchen’s cover of Prefab Sprout’s “All The World Loves Lovers” than a full-on track. ASM bring a light folky vibe with its stirring sting arrangement and tasteful guitar line. A jarring drop in bpm brings up Telepopmusic’s “Breathe,” the previous track’s drums stopping on a dime, with singer Angela McCluskey struggling to maintain a tempo. When “Breathe” finally kicks in, 40 seconds later, the pace thankfully picks back up, and Burger is back on track. But those 40 seconds, so loud in their silence, are a letdown. Viewed in another light, its an unfortunate mistake, but, as above, one that reinforces the notion that this mix was created somewhat live by a real person, not painstakingly created in ProTools and spliced to death. Then the thumping starts with Superpitcher’s outstanding remix of Dntel’s “(This Is) The Dream of Evan and Chan.” Ben Gibbard’s somewhat obtuse lyrical musings on Evan Dando and Cat Power’s Chan Marshall are placed in subservience to the rhythm and pulsing keyboards supplied by Aksel Schaufler, until the track breaks down to ambient synth and Gibbard’s climactic eviscerating of Dando. Burger wisely turns down the tempo with Erland Oye’s “Ghost Trains” before Richard Davis’ “World Disappears” kicks in with an electro-house vibe, prompting some vigorous booty-shaking.
The second half of the mix proceeds much like the first, with top-shelf selections from Repair (“Never Forgive and Forget”, Superpitcher (“Mushroom Angels”), and Burger’s own Modernist (“Protest Song”) . The real surprise comes at the very end of the album, a new track from Scritti Politti, the 80s band that had been languishing in semi-obscurity since 1988. Round Two’s “New Day” fades down to beatless static, allowing “The Boom Boom Bap” to be included without being mixed-in. Honestly, the track seems completely out of place in this collection, and reasons for its inclusion remain a mystery.
All around a mostly-solid addition to Burger’s ever-expanding catalog, Popular Songs sets high expectations for further entries on the Collector’s Series.
Popular Songs is out now on Faith. Buy it at Amazon.com.
