The coolest chill-out album
Eanna Cunnane | Cork South Central | 11/09/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Etienne de Crecy has been one of the leading lights in the french house scene over the last five years. Although he's not as prominent as, say, Daft Punk, he's arguably more influential, and the Super Discount compilation he produced in '97 has got to be one of the best dance albums of the 90's, containing sophisticated, funky tunes that manage to be both danceable and listenable. However, apart from the (admittedly excellent) album he produced as one half of Motorbass, there hasn't been a collection of de Crecy's own work until now - and it's markedly different from his previous stuff. So don't listen to Tempovision expecting upbeat four-to-the-floor stompers; it's a much more relaxed, intimate affair, and of all the tracks, only the disco-house of "Am I wrong" would fit on Super Discount. Like those on Pansoul, the Motorbass album, the tracks on Tempovision are constructed from snippets of sound - brief vocal sighs, constantly shifting rhythms, and often almost subliminally quiet basslines - that work more to establish an atmosphere than carry a tune. For example, the vocals of p-funk star Clip Payne, which were one of the high points of Alex Gopher's "You, My Baby and I" album, are here reduced to mere isolated words and fragments. The overall effect is melancholic but uniquely beautiful, especially when de Crecy drops samples of rare groove vocals from Esther Phillips over his own immaculate backing track, as on "Out of My Hands", and the whole thing really takes off. All in all, it's subdued and tasteful, an album for the small hours of the morning, but one for lounging around rather than for dancing to. Try it."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1