Various Artists
Deutscher Funk
(Caipirinha)
Back when I first started buying electronic music, I used to pick up quite a few compilations. As I discovered more and more artists and became a more discerning listener, I found myself buying less and less of them because the majority of the time, I'd already end up having several (or more) of the songs that were on the compilation to begin with. As a majority, I think that compilations probably work that way in general, as introductions to those less familiar. Deutscher Funk is one of those discs, though, that upon first listen I had actually only heard of 3 of the 12 groups on the disc. It's one of those few compilation discs that will play well for most people who are fairly well-versed with the genre, mainly because its inclusion of artists from really small labels, as well as many who were at the time of the release still up-and-coming.
The title of the disc actually is kind of one that may throw some for a loop. Although some tracks are kind of funky, most of them fall into more of an experimental electronic category that would simply freak out someone thinking they had found the German George Clinton. The disc starts out with teenage wunderkids Workshop and their up-and-out song called "Eskapade." From there it goes to almost reggae dub (Mono's "Inflatable Rasta Wig"), quirky sound experiments (Beige's "Yakumo Dippel") and trippy ethno-sounding stuff (Mao II's "Der kleine note Rachen"). The compilation also includes tracks by well-knowns such as Pole ("Berlin" from CD 1) and Mouse On Mars ("Chromantic" from Instrumentals).
Overall, it's a great introduction to some great new music from the country who brought you Kraftwerk and Weinerschnitzel, as nearly all of the songs on the disc haven't been released elsewhere (yet). Judging by the sounds on the disc, you'll be hearing a lot more from Deutschland in the future of electronic music.
Rating: 7.25
