Mouse On Mars – Autoditacker (Too Pure)

Bouncy and poppy, but with a full quota of weirdness always on hand, this is the first Mouse On Mars album since 1995's acclaimed 'Laora Tahiti'. But since their last LP there has been collaborations with Wolfgang Flur from Kraftwerk and Stereolab, both of which have bought a summer freshness to their sound. Mouse On Mars provide perfect chilled sounds for the moment, unbeatable in pure trippy melodies and with a refreshing timbre that is missing from the harsher, darker side of techno and dreamed-up house. 'Sui Shop' and 'Juju' take quirky to new heights and it's not long before a funky Mouse On Mars-style spin on drum & bass is introduced in 'Twift Shoeblade'. But nothing's heavy going about this album - any or all of the tracks could easily be used as the soundtrack to a French cosmetics advert of your choice. They may be German, but this is almost certainly the sort of music that Jean Michel Jarre would be making, if he hadn't lost the plot after his original 1970s debut. Stand-out tracks include 'Scat', 'Schnick Schnack Melt Made' and 'X-Files' (this title being probably the only herd-following element on the album). Forget DJ Dado, Mouse On Mars' 'X-Files' rivets a wicked, tiny beat-up drum & bass loop onto some liquid keyboard pads. When the melodies drop (in tracks such as 'Radio' and 'Maggots Hell Wings') it leaves a confusing set of beats and pulses - all set to disorientate the listener and leave them wanting more. And as a result, Autoditacker is definitely one of the freshest and most original albums of this year. 9/10