This week’s selection for ‘Staff Pick Of The Week’ comes from our trusty counter manager and Meda Fury head honcho, Nick Willams!
Like a lot of great discoveries here at Phonica, some of the best ones arrive serreptitiously, without the fanfare that they might later deserve. Rouge Mecanique is one such relatively recent find – his debut album ‘Don’t Touch My Sister‘ landed last week. You know you’re onto something interesting when one struggles to describe the variety of sounds contained. 2 years ago his debut 12″ came into the shop on the relatively new Pyramids On Mars imprint, the A side was a strange subtle mix of jazzy drums and ambient noise, while the flip offered up a killer disco groove drenched in live slide guitar, it could have got lost in the usual deluge of new releases but we were aware this new label was helmed by one serious head/producer: Matt Edwards – and possibly some involvement from equally infamous digger/DJ/collector Joel Martin. A cursory glance at their roster of Quiet Village, Vince Watson and Joe Claussell might give you an idea of the musical quality and calibre on offer here. A second 12″ release last year on his own ‘Rouge Mecanique Musique‘ label furthered our intrigue with more eclectic offerings; menacing electro, sunny nu-age ambience and minimal acid?! Obviously we were faced with a producer of radical ideas, flexible intent and a healthy disregard for genres. But who is he? Relatively little is known – his real name is Roman Azzaro, he comes from Paris and is a multi-instrumentalist (his live guitar and other live textures can be heard all over the album) his future should prove interesting, having already collaborated with film maker Louis Vignat, and Les Beaux Arts de Paris artist Jeanne Briand (who provided the cover artwork) What we do know is we have heard the first fully realised and impressive debut of 2016 – full of bluesy interludes, electronic workouts and atmospheric/organic compositions. The proof is here – Bon appétit!
