Link: The Other Side: Paris
The Inside Pulse:
Part of a larger effort to create multimedia pocket guides to the world’s most compelling cities — New York and London round out the first wave — this package combines a combo CD and DVD with a fold out travel guide filled with info including cool bars, interesting activities, transportation advice and a loose category called “illicit.” I’ve been to Paris several times, but never spent more than a week there. So this is not meant to judge the package or even the music for its veracity, but for its achievement in selling the city as a must-see.
The audio portion of the offering, compiled and mixed by the “irrefutably French” duo Black Strobe, is a perfect complement to the stated goal of this project: offering a decidedly subjective view into the city. This is a disk you can play at a house party for your nihilist friends or use to block out the mindless drones sharing your commute. After one listen it is guaranteed that you will feel better than those around you and insist on spiking your pleasure with an equal measure of pain.
The blend of thudding beats and a Gallic/gothic sensibility works if you are willing to accept the slightly haphazard song selection and not always perfect segueing. Remember, it’s about setting the mood and attitude, not creating something new or even great. By the second listen I was ready to show up to work an hour late and spend the rest of the morning smoking at the local café mocking the boring and the stupid.
Positives:
Immersive? Oui!
Far from Now That’s What I Call Music 43, this isn’t a hits compilation, so you’re likely getting tracks that mostly new to you.
Within the context of dance floor-ready electronica, there is nice variety to the songs, i.e.: there are melodies that change from track to track, even if it’s for just 30 seconds or so.
Bonus positive: the DVD and guide, which are not just tack-ons, but fully-vested components of the package (though the DVD is better than the paper guide).
Negatives:
This is not nearly for everyone.
There is far more to Paris than the underground discos.
Several tracks disappear into the haze of the mix and there are a few very awkward beats that sound more sloppy than intentional. (Eh, but such is life, no?)
Cross-breed:
If you must have it spelled out for you in terms that your American throwaway derivative culture can grasp, think of Enigma’s “Sadeness” updated for the 21st century combined with Sartre’s “Nausea.”
Reason to buy:
You are a gallophile, curious as to what makes those French tick or considering a trip to the city of lights.
