- FTD's third release continues the label's run of curveballs, plucking a lesser-known entity, as with Lutto Lento on FTD001, out of the obscure cassette scene. Parisian brothers Elzéard & Moana put out a few tracks of muggy electronica on the Certified Tapes label earlier this year. This release is much bolder, inviting us into a rich world of cosmic house and techno.
Each brother contributes a few solo tracks, all of them strange and fascinating. The duo's flair is perhaps best captured on Moana's "Zimba": like much of the EP, it's a meandering journey through a huge, disorientating landscape. In the breakdown, the house pulse shears away and densely layered synths spiral upwards, creating a buildup worthy of big-room techno. It's audacious, but with the help of a guy howling wildly in the distance Moana pulls it off.
His other contribution is the equally energetic "Planck Unit," which jams out on a pentatonic scale with the madcap glee of Max D. Elzéard's three tracks explore more restrained moods, though they're no less absorbing. The slow-mo "Concussion" sounds like a stargazing refix of something off Lee Gamble's KOCH. "Cosmic Dust" and "Mud In The Dub" are coasting techno numbers wreathed in thick synth fog. The former is a labyrinthine epic, the latter spookier and a bit less convincing. Even in their weaker moments, though, these brothers show serious promise.
TracklistA1 Concussion
A2 Cosmic Dust
A3 Mud In The Dub
B1 Zimba
B2 Planck Unit