{"id":713,"date":"2012-02-14T04:59:58","date_gmt":"2012-02-14T09:59:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=713"},"modified":"2012-02-14T04:59:58","modified_gmt":"2012-02-14T09:59:58","slug":"album-review-air-le-voyage-dans-la-lune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2012\/02\/14\/album-review-air-le-voyage-dans-la-lune\/","title":{"rendered":"Album Review: Air – Le Voyage Dans la Lune"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to \u2013 if you\u2019ll forgive the obvious pun \u2013 atmospheric music, you can’t do better than Air<\/strong>. Never exactly a rock group, the French duo has carved out a niche of their own, producing sweeping, emotional, evocative music that sounds like no one else. Beginning with their 1998 debut Moon Safari<\/em><\/a>, Air crafted a sonic approach that has influenced many bands in the electronica, chillwave, ambient and plain-old-pop genres.<\/p>\n

Their approach can often be dubbed \u201ccinematic,\u201d andi nfact their breakthrough release was in fact a film soundtrack, 2000’s The Virgin Suicides<\/em>. Air’s laid-back yet still somehow exciting music was perfect as a backdrop for the silver screen. Their latest Le Voyage Dans la Lune<\/em> (A Trip to the Moon<\/em>) occupies a similar role, but this time it’s not a modern-day theatrical release. Well, not exactly: Voyage Dans la Lune<\/em> is Air’s new soundtrack to Georges M\u00e9li\u00e8s<\/strong>‘ silent film of the same name made in 1912<\/strike> 1902<\/font>.<\/p>\n

On the disc, Air do not \u2013 thankfully \u2013 attempt to create steampunky arch-retro-futuristic sounds; they merely apply their musical perspective to the film’s aesthetic. Instrumental tracks alternate with pieces that feature spoken-word accompaniment, things that sound like what a stewardess might tell passengers on their way to the big grey ball in the sky.<\/p>\n

Throughout the disc, the emphasis is less on synthesized (read: associated with a particular era) sounds and more on timeless sonics created by tympani, acoustic piano, vibraphone and voice. To be sure, there are some sampled chorus voices and the like (especially on \u201cLava,\u201d where they’re folded into real voices. That track’s use of banjo is subtly reminiscent of Brian Wilson<\/strong>‘s employment of the instrument on his SMiLE<\/em> sessions.<\/p>\n

And some soaring, screaming electric guitar even makes the occasional appearance, giving the proceedings a slightly Pink Floyd<\/strong>-ish ambience. The band rocks out on \u201cParade,\u201d sounding a bit like another exemplar of the cinematic\/instrumental approach, 70s stalwarts The Alan Parsons Project<\/strong>. Here, synthesizers and \u201creal\u201d instruments coexist happily. More placid tracks such as \u201cRetour Sur Terre\u201d sound like a cross between Carole King<\/strong> and Brian Eno<\/strong>. The doomy vibe of \u201cSeven Stars\u201d crosses prog drumming with Low<\/em>-era David Bowie<\/strong>, creating a fast\/slow tension that evokes the feeling of silently hurtling through space. And on \u201cSonic Armada\u201d Air shows how much they can do with very little: the analog lead and rubbery bass line work together to develop a track that’s almost dance-oriented. The sing-songy female lead vocal on \u201cWho Am I Now\u201d is reminiscent of material from yet another retro-film project, Roman Coppola<\/strong>‘s 2001 film CQ<\/em>. That soundtrack featured another French band, the very Air-influenced (and aptly-named) Mellow<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Le Voyage Dans la Lune <\/em>is successful on several levels: it works as a film soundtrack; it bears up under close\/active listening; and it serves equally well as sonic wallpaper. It’s an all-purpose disc.<\/span><\/p>\n

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When it comes to \u2013 if you\u2019ll forgive the obvious pun \u2013 atmospheric music, you can’t do better than Air. Never exactly a rock group, the French duo has carved […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-review","cat-65-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=713"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/713\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}