The Breakdown
Curiouser and curiouser, here’s the return of the illusive and slighty mysterious persona known as The Offline (aka Hamburg based guitarist/producer Felix Müller) with a quirky new EP ‘Les Cigales’. Keeping in line with The Offline line, this new release finds him digging through the crates from classic soundtrack to obscure library music, dusty funk to old soul and emerging with a fresh set of inspirations. The sweep of Axelrod plus the darker heart of Barry Adamson may still linger but ‘Les Cigales’ sees Müller reinforcing his own raison d’être with that characteristic panache.
The plot began in 2022 with the ‘En Clair-Obscur’ EP, a recording that grew from his photography gig in the coastal resorts of south-west France then turned heads with its sleek instrumentals and neat trimmed euro funk. A year later ‘La couleur de la mer’ captured the mood of warm beach encounters, secluded villas and dirty deals with its retro-grooves, imaginary film score. Now we have ‘Les Cigales’ which sees the Offline tweaking the mix slightly, perhaps less of the Mancini blockbuster and more of an understated intimate kind of a recording. The mini-orchestra has been mostly stood down this time, though a faithful gang with previous Offline connections remain, Chris Hill on drums plus Kimo Eiserbeck and Hans-Christian Stephen with the brass. Müller remains at the controls as composer and provider of guitars and keys.
So the sonic range of this EP might be a little more reduced but what it loses in scale it gains in definition and purpose. This tighter focus is needed because ‘Les Cigales’ sets out with a love story to tell, the relationship between two friends whose connection breaks convention. The composer says the plot’s inspired by the ancient creation myth of Gyptis and Protis (Wiki it) which might sound heavily dramatic but naturally The Offline’s take is more suggestive, subtle and arthouse. Just watch the videos series that Müller has made to complement the tracks and you’ll get the picture. Anyway, however sophisticated the musical ambitions on ‘Les Cigales’ may be, if you simply let these tunes simmer their strange seductive charm intensifies.
Générique sets up the scene with cosmic vibes which ease into a gentle funky stroll along the shoreline. It’s airily dreamy, Müller’s guitar tone and the glockenspiel chiming in a soulful Isley Brother’s way. From here the slow burn continues. Les Amis has frisky tension contrasted with proto-schmaltzy contentment, shock-horror horn phrases paired with a carefree melody while Un long ete chaud features pastoral brass, Hammond splashes and harpsichord-like tingles all in under two minutes. Taken alone this song trio might seem slow-burn but as mood builders they inevitably draw you into the EP.
One thing that’s clear from the off is that the astute brass arrangements add a new dimension to The Offline soundscape but there are other neat twists nestling throughout ‘Les Cigales’. Check the gorgeous flat snare smack in the eccentric hip hop breaks meets MOR bossa of Parmi les pins or the way on Fumée a fat, Khruangbin beat gets periodically draped in woozy synths, prog-ish flute trills and a sixties psych zithering.
Although each track on the EP is kept relatively snappy ‘Les Cigales’ comes across as more than a series of random sketches, it has an episodic feel. The plot pivots around the title track which floats on a cosmic hip-hop haze, so no surprise then that Felix Müller has name-checked The Alchemist’s as an inspiration here. Listening to the scuzzy wah-wah riff (and avoiding Peter Frampton ping-backs) you also get a juicy daisy-Age/ Pharcyde tang bubbling through the tune. Throw in some crisp Joe Gibbs, rock-steady horn comments and you’ve got a mighty extended mix waiting to happen. In the Offline context though, the scenes need to flow and Le long de la rive is the outlet, a lounging smooth jazz number where the Rhodes keys chime and Kimo Eiserbeck’s flute brings a sombre thoughtfulness. The pace picks up at the close, with splashing drums and a brass-led swell to take you near to the final frame.
As Chambre d’Amour skips to the credits, Lovers Rock sweet and fulfilled, this story might be resolved but the ongoing enigma around The Offline lingers. Once again Müller has clearly delivered a winning set with ‘Les Cigales’ which is stoic in its dedication to early seventies TV soundtracks but not stuck in some pedantic retro groove. However because of his photographic/visual art leanings you wonder what comes first the pictures or the soundtrack, whether pastiche comes into it or a dry humorous streak underpins this continuing project. There could be none or could be all of these things at work and that may be how Felix Müller likes it, an open invitation to think as you listen. All you need to know at this point is that with ‘Les Cigales’ he’s crafted an EP which will intrigue, have you itching to re-spin and also committed to investigate the next Offline instalment.
Get your copy of ‘Les Cigales‘ by The Offline from your local record store or direct drom DeepMatter HERE
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