What: “Hantises” by Muhr
Netlabel: Camomille/Les Enregistrements Variables
Muhr is Vincent Fugère, one of the cofounders of this netlabel located in beautiful downtown Canada; Montreal, Quebec to be specific. This album was released at the end of August, 2012.
From what I can ascertain the word “hantise” has to do with ghosts or haunting. I can definitely see that influence in these nine tracks, but it’s more suggested than an overwhelming theme. The first couple tracks (especially “Gattuso”) are songs I believe Portishead fans would take to immediately. The rest of the tracks are in the same general vein, but are often less dense and occasionally wander into more upbeat territory. Most of the instrumentation throughout sounds like variations of clean drum and piano sound, with electronics taking center stage at times and enhancing the background at others. Some of the melodies are even playful (including the appropriately named “Some Kids Might”). The title track closes the set and sounds like a missing Joy Division dirge overlaid with some squelchy synth.
So sometimes this music is more atmospheric, sometimes it sneaks into trip hop territory; overall this is a really beautiful sounding album. It’s mostly instrumental with some French singing/recitation mixed in on a couple tracks. And the beauty does not stop at the music. The artwork for the album (shown above) is sensuous and mysterious, which seems to carry over to a lot of the other art on the label. If you are in the mood to explore, in addition to more music, the site has interesting art and links from the two founders.