Detailed Reviews [Lerouge – 2010 - "Un Peu plus de Noir"]

Prolusion. French composer LEROUGE is an artist who, biography-wise, has kept a rather low profile so far. He's 50-years-old, resides in the town of Goujounac, and as far as I have managed to ascertain "Un Peu Plus de Noir" is his first official CD, issued by Musea Records on their Gazul imprint in the fall of 2010.

Analysis. Lerouge is one of many composers who have embraced modern technology when creating their musical excursions. He comments himself that many don't truly acknowledge utilizing the PC as a tool for music creation, but that he doesn't really see any major difference between using that tool and various kinds of synthesizers, both of which are computers at heart, but with certain ergonomic differences. He does acknowledge certain limitations in terms of the software available to craft one's own music though, the major one being the vast array of prefabricated samples most tend to use. To counter that weakness of his chosen tool, he has invested a lot of time in creating his own samples, so that his compositions can have a unique sound. The stylistic expression explored on this production can by and large be described as experimental electronic music, with a clear emphasis on minimalistic pieces. Lerouge appears to have a deep fascination with atmospheres of the darker variety, and words like bleak, brooding, ominous and desolate will most aptly be frequently applied to any general description of his material – alongside repetitive and hypnotic, which are constantly present traits of the material chosen for this production. Within this more or less limited stylistic scope, there's ample diversity to appreciate, first and foremost in terms of the types of sounds used. Apres La Revolution features samples of birdsong and what appears to be a pool game, the former contrasting a reverberating dark synth texture, and the latter given the role of rhythms provider, with Lerouge adding his sampled vocals to the proceedings in an effective manner. Pietinements Rageurs is dominated by a highly distorted, static-sounding synth layer, slowly fluctuating, with light whistles and later with what almost sounds like digital trumpet bursts contrasing with them, while a slow, machine-like rhythm circulates beneath, where the second stage of this piece replaces the additional sounds with hypnotic, energetic rhythms racing onwards beneath the still slowly fluctuating, distorted electronic pattern. L'Art de l'Oisivete has a dampened, light-timbre synth put in a circulating recurring pattern as the foundation, augmented by a minor plethora of dark machine and metallic bursts and drones, crafting one of the bleakest and most desolate sounding landscapes present on this album. The brilliant Trance Pores is an example of a totally different expression, with three layers of partially disharmonic textures supported by pace-filled drum machine rhythms, where darker and more organic sounding electronic drums appear from time to time, adding somber timbres, yet also a stronger feeling of life and energy to the proceedings. The darker moods are clearly dominant, and the majority of these pieces are of the slower variety, hypnotic and enthralling, very much depending on how fond one is of electronic excursions adhering to a certain set of minimalistic principles.

Conclusion. Electronic music is a genre ranging from the relaxing contemplation of new age-inspired ventures to the freaked out non-musical efforts of the experimental enthusiasts. Lerouge's place in this picture is among the purveyors of melodic pieces, albeit a version whose take on it stays well off any paths already highly explored. Reverberating sounds and timbre fluctuations are the name of the game, set in dark, brooding and mostly minimalistic landscapes where metallic sounds and machine-inspired textures are frequently encountered. If this sounds enticing, this French artist may well have found himself a new fan in you, dear reader.

OMB=Olav M Bjornsen: February 2, 2011
The Rating Room