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"the asthmatic worm"

Mobile
Pulling off a themed compilation with a number of better-known musicalartists is not the easiest thing to do, so I commend this new label,Mobile, for piecing together something this consistent. The themebasically rides a current trend in electronic music, incorporating theusage of accordion (historically referred to as an asthmatic worm) andthe simpler, yet similar sounding melodica. Unfortunately, of thetwelve tracks, only two (Dntel and Markus Nikolai) are exclusive tothis compilation. While I clearly love Múm, I'm wondering who would beshopping for this compilation who hasn't heard this album track from'Yesterday Was Dramatic', but in all fairness, it is quitecomplimentary to the rest of the compilation, which includes commonunderground electro-celebs Atom TM, Matthew Herbert's Doctor Rockit,Ekkehard Ehlers (as Maerz with Albrecht Kunze), Burnt Friedman &Jakt Liebezeit and Gonzales. Unexpected treats include the pleasanthead-nod from Sensorama, a gipsy folk-esque song from a band simplytitled Hey, and a French film score-mimicing contribution from GotanProject. Jimmy Tamborello of Dntel sounds like he recruited that singerfrom Casiotone for the Painfully Alone for a gorgeous track whichperfectly compliments last year's stunning Dntel album on Plug Researchand Wechsel Garland incorporate the star instrument into a laid-backorgan, vibe, bass and drum jam, making me wish I knew more about thisartist. It might not be the most original compilation you'll find butit sure does sound good.

 

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