Active as a DJ since the ’90s, founder of the labels BPitch Control (Modeselektor, Sascha Funk, early Paul Kalkbrenner) and UFO Inc, godmother of a techno festival in the north of France, seasoned producer… you guessed it, Germany’s Ellen Allien is a matron. In spite of her success, she retains her authenticity, and you can hear it musically. The 50-year-old is capable of electrifying crowds at Igloofest and Piknic Électronik as much as she was able to move the floor at La fin du vinyle, a record store on Saint-Laurent Blvd., during a Vinylism tour a few years ago. Accustomed to the album format – she has eight on her counter, which is quite rare in the techno world – the producer has mastered the development of narrativity. Her voice, on the first two tracks “Hello Planet Earth” and “In Music I Trust” (electronic vocals) accompanies our introduction: experimental, it will be. “True Romantics” unveils a kick to wake the dead. If the first third of “Traum” looks towards psy (it gallops), its evolution leads us towards more ethereal sounds and then back to an acid line, creating a sound universe at the crossroads. The bass line of “Walking in the Dark” takes us back to EBM, Berlin of the 1980s, and D.A.F. Same for the little jewel “Confusion”. In short, Allien reminds us that we miss the dance floor, the darkness, and the smell of sweat terribly. Easily moving from one genre to another, the veteran techno player masters the codes without falling into clichés.
Latest 360 Content
Concert review Classical/classique
Pinnacle of Modern Choral Music at the Azrieli Music Prizes
By Alain Brunet
Interview classique/Classical
OSL | Antoine Bareil Plays Mendelssohn’s Famous Violin Concerto
By Alexandre Villemaire
Concert review Hip Hop/Moyen-Orient / Levant / Maghreb/rap
Arab World Festival of Montreal | Narcy and Omar Offendum: Two Decades of Friendship in Artistry
By Sandra Gasana
Interview Electronic/Classical/classique
Örjan Sandred and the Stenhammar Quartet Reinvent Live Electronics
By Alexandre Villemaire
Album review Classical/classique 2024
James Ehnes/Orchestre philharmonique de Bergen, dir.: Edward Gardner – Sibelius : Violin Concerto, Serenades, Humoresques
By Frédéric Cardin
Album review Modern music 2024
India Gailey – Butterfly Lightning Shakes the Earth
By Frédéric Cardin
Album review Western European/Jazz/Eastern European/Modern music/Traditional 2024
Calgaréal – Vanishing Points
By Frédéric Cardin
Concert review Classical/classique
Violons du Roy | Richness and Vocal Splendor of the Divine Handel
By Mona Boulay
Interview expérimental / contemporain/Classical/classique
Le Vivier | Flashback: Immersive Exploration of the Narcissus Myth for Violin and Electronics
By Alain Brunet
Interview
Arab World Festival of Montreal | New Diva Uprooted From Her Native Palestine
By Alain Brunet
Concert review
Quatuor Molinari | Guido Molinari’s Major Inspiration, 20 Years After His Death
By Alain Brunet
Concert review expérimental / contemporain/Pop/Rock
I can’t stop thinking about the Xiu Xiu show in Montreal
By Vanessa Barron
Interview Hip Hop/Moyen-Orient / Levant / Maghreb
Arab World Festival of Montreal | Narcy and Hakawati Omar Offendum meet in the present tense
By Sandra Gasana
Album review Modern music 2024