Enola - Alone

  • Share
  • Having both your pseudonym and your first album's title echo a mid-'90s Manic Street Preachers proto-emo song is probably as un-electronic as an electronic music newcomer can get. Yet this is the path chosen by Matthieu Monnin's Enola, the latest recruit to French imprint Initial Cuts, the home of angular electro weirdoes Tekel and Black Strobe-affiliate Siskid. Raised on a strict diet of '90s techno àla Laurent Garnier and Danny Eflman-penned musical scores, Enola writes the type of celestial techno that used to be showcased on compilations such as the Trance Europe Express series. Alone, the 30 year-old producer's debut album, is highly reverential, having more to do with "Analogue Bubblebath" than, say, "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next." For instance, the aptly titled, ten-minute odyssey "Take a Trip," "Lost in Shibuya" and album closer "Utopia" all recall a lighthearted version of The Black Dog and a time when some dance music was thought to be "intelligent." That said, those looking for the complex or innovative rhythmic designs of Aphex Twin will be disappointed: Alone has an overall more classical facture: it usually follows 4x4 beats with muted kick drums inspired by early '90s techno: "Words in a Bottle" and "One Upon a Time (Part 2)" have Speedy J and Dave Clarke on a quiet day written all over them. The album isn't all about European influences, though, as "Lascive" displays an old-school Chicago vibe mixed with a complex orchestration of poignant beeps in the background. That is precisely Enola's strength: the lack of inventiveness on the rhythmic side is hugely compensated by the album's varied melodic twists. Unfortunately, when Enola veers from his initial plan, it isn't always successful, as a cut like "Pristi the Cat" lacks focus and direction and "Sarah" unconvincingly sounds like a trip-hop-tinged vocal-led ballad that wants to be Massive Attack but doesn't really seem to know how. Alone is only Initial Cuts' third album, after a first long player and a singles compilation from Tekel, so it is still quite early to tell how it fits with the artistic direction for the label. Even compared to what has been released this year in France, Enola doesn't really sound like anything else, which makes him a welcomed peculiarity. The only points of reference would be the score Agoria wrote last year for Go Fast and, at times, DJ Hell's recently reminiscing about his formative influences on Teufelswerk. Considering both Enola's influences and aims on Alone, that is sufficiently reasonable praise.
  • Tracklist
      01. Once Upon a Time Part 1 02. Words in a Bottle 03. Pristi the Cat 04. The A Trip 05. Sarah 06. Lascive 07. Lost in Shibuya 08. In Utero 09. Once Upon a Time Part 2 10. Utopia
RA