Modeselektor are one of my favorite electronic acts of the past several years. Their quality control is generally quite high and they are supremely versatile, trying their hand at various aspects of electronic music without ever pandering to many cliches or allowing themselves to be painted into any musical corner. After a series of diverse and successful 12" releases which ran the gamut from "serious" IDM to full-on rave tracks, Modeselektor released the wildly surprising & delightful Hello Mom! album in 2006. It was a wallop of an album in that it combined everything the pair does so well, and expanded upon it further. It included references to hip hop, electro, hardcore, IDM, grime and more, without ever seeming too scattered or fragmented.
So it happens that if Happy Birthday! somehow feels slightly underwhelming, it's only in the fact that it's not as surprising as the debut full-length. It's not any less successful, or less diverse, and still seems to smartly reflect their various interests musically, but just in that sheer "wow" factor it's a case of diminishing returns.
With that small point of criticism out of the way, I have to admit that it's a pretty killer album. They've reprised the TTC collaboration from their debut with another here called "2000007," which is just as hot and fucked-up as the last go-round, as well as other vocal contributions from Puppetmastaz (the humorous "Dark Side of the Frog/Sun"), Maximo Park and Schematic noisemaker Otto Von Schirach (another humorous tune, "Hyper Hyper" is a shout-out to all things hi-nrg). Two of my personal favorites are collaborations with Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke ("The White Flash" has all the strength that The Eraser aspired to) and Tikiman Paul St. Hillaire, whose "Let Your Love Grow" collaboration with the duo and Apparat (credited to their previously one-off Moderat alias) absolutely soars in its combination of surging chords, dub beat and vocal.
But most of this album is Modeselektor on their own, making a variety of sweet instrumentals that crossover between electronic subgenres and back again, often effortlessly and many times within one track. "Edgar" has a great grime rhythm track over an aspirational melodic workout, while "Godspeed" is a fantastic crescendo of a track, working in tandem with the goofy title track to kick off the album with a bolt of energy. "B.M.I." has all the dark crunch of a good Sleeparchive track (his remix from their debut must have rubbed off) while "The Black Block" is probably the most direct dancefloor banger to be found.
While Happy Birthday! might not have quite the same element of surprise that characterized Modeselektor's first album, it's still quite strong and showcases their wide variety of interests, influences and talents.
mp3s: Godspeed | Let Your Love Grow
more information: BPitch Control | Official Site | Myspace
buy it: Forced Exposure | Boomkat | iTunes | Emusic | Amazon
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