- Ido Oshkopun is apparently a Tibetan exile currently making minimal techno while living in Varanasi, India. Hooray for globalization. This story is backed up by a photo set on Ido’s MySpace, which has weathered-looking peasants labeled things like “My brother Ede” and “My sister Ida”, and Tibetan drums labeled "Drum of my childhood" and such like. Yeah, right. If a Tibetan peasant made this record, then I’m the Dalai Lama. Ido looks nothing at all like his brother or sister, for starters.
Then there is the music, which has all the hallmarks of the kind of ethno-techno that could only be made in the West. The A-side of Out of Burma (odd switch of countries there), ‘Rangun’, is built with a sleek minimal chassis and a looong Detroit string, over the top of which is laid a woman wailing mournfully in what I presume is Burmese. It all works together wonderfully, especially after a funny little snare roll of a breakdown when the elements jump back in and hang together for a moment (Shade of Audio Werner’s ‘Trust’ maybe. Hmm). Anyway, fans of Luciano’s ‘Yamore’ or Henrik Schwarz’ ‘Voui Voui Mu’ looking for a similar unusual flavour for their sets would do well to investigate this.
Unfortunately, exotic element on the B is less striking, a desultory-sounding tin gong, which again is paired with Germanic minimal, this time less sleek, more plip-plop, and less engaging for it. But again there is something Audio Werner about the track, specifically the goofy drum samples. Hmmm!
So there it is. Ido’s MySpace comments section is filled with well-wishers taking his earnest story seriously, and A-side of this record is doing the rounds in the clubs, as well it should. It's pretty good stuff. The only thing left is to find out is which German wiseguy actually made it.
You know who my money is on.
TracklistA Rangun
B Naypyidaw