Review: Under the Akufen alias, Marc Leclair was one of the undoubted deep house stars of the early 2000s - a "micro-house" and "digital disco" pioneer who served up a swathe of killer releases. Since returning from a near decade hiatus in 2012 Leclair has not consistently hit those highs, but he's still capable of crafting quality cuts - as this fine EP proves. Check first the breezy bounce of "My Blue House", where sun-kissed piano riffs and sweet synth-strings dance jauntily above a typically swinging groove, before turning your attention to the smooth micro-house deepness of "Forever In Love With You". "You Look Delicious" sees Leclair add spacey jazz electric piano solos to a deep and glitchy groove, while the Surface-sampling "Play" sits somewhere between digital disco and skittish electro.
Review: The first release on Musique Risquee this year sees Marc 'Akufen' Leclair embark on a cosmic journey. The title track is one of his typically detailed arrangements, with insane screeching violins, drunken piano lines and off-kilter xylophone riffs appearing at various stages. By contrast, "Bos Indicus" is more straightforward with hissing percussion and driving drums providing a more dancefloor-based approach - but here too Leclair can't resist the urge to add in some woozy jazz chords and chiming bells. "T'es Con, T'es Content" sees him adopt a more seductive approach, with a husky singer wittering on en Francais over a shuffling groove. Meanwhile "You like Red Beans! (We go Together)" and "Chocolate, Strawberry, Peach, Vanilla, Banana, Pistachio, Peppermint, Lemon, Orange, Butterscotch, Ice Cream Cone" are fun tracks, with the latter lifting the vocal sample from Sesame Street.
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