“Roots is as good as Timeless II and has this something about beats that are very catchy, lively and finally very harmonious...plus the guitar”
1 Roots 9:42
2 Revolution 8:42
3 Deep Dream 6:30
4 50 Years TD...Tribute 11:51
5 Bells 7:34
6 B.T.T.R 9:17
7 Open Land 8:55
(CD/DDL 62:23) (V.F.)
(Berlin School)
Timeless II had consolidated the position of FD Project in the list of very influential musicians in the spheres of EM of the Berlin School genre. And it's not with ROOTS that the German multi-instrumentalist will lose a centimeter of his place. Album teeming with very catchy rhythmic patterns, ROOTS proposes 7 structures laying down on movements of the sequencer which moves like a nest of rhythmic serpents. The sequences vibrate with usual tones as distorted and the percussions adjust these rhythms between phases of dance and others more sedentary while the synths and the guitar adjust their duels in a fascinating complicity which flows with so much evidence ... as if one can't go without the other in the FD Project universe.
The title-track is reminiscent of Edgar Froese. The movement of the sequencer offers a line of rhythm that zigzags between its soft tones and other with distorted sounds. Another line is grafted and then another ... Roots then becomes a gyratory rhythmic crossroads which ends up relying on sober percussions. It's pure Berlin School from the late 70's with a rhythmic and melodic structure that moves its loops under good effects of astral mist and solos blown from the fingertips. Revolution follows with a good electronic rock that is just straddling a slow and lively structure. Heavy and spheroidal, the rhythm is certainly very catchy for the feet while serving as a basis for a guitar which exploits its heavy and aerial solos without forgetting its dance of the riffs. Some big electronic rock unique to the signature of Frank Dorittke. Deep Dream is another very catchy title. Its minimalist structure offers a good rhythm with slightly spasmodic curves. Sober percussions add a slight stir to a rhythmic ritornello that is thirsty for Techno and whose main core freezes an ear-worm well connected to our feet. The solos are divided between those of a synth, which leaves more room for rhythmic charm, and a voracious guitar which proves the possibility of a real complicity between the synth and the guitar in the world of EM.
50 Years TD ... Tribute is a title that is more attached to the influences of Edgar Froese than Tangerine Dream. Its rhythm structure is just as sedentary as the others in ROOTS. It wavers between its musical and distorted tonalities while being surrounded by nebulous effects and other slightly more organic effects. I try to find the links between this title and its meaning! One thing is certain however; that's the kind of title that requires several plays before seducing unlike the other 6 tracks on this album which are literally more accessible. Bells is another free interpretation and especially an umpteenth tribute to the tubular works of Mike Oldfield. This time the German guitarist-synthesist is inspired by the more contemporary harmonies of Tubular Bells. Molded a bit on the style of Deep Dream, B.T.T.R offers a good dizzying electronic rock which is rich of its lively and jerky sequences. The percussions give tone to this structure whose skillful mesh between the tones of the sequencer inspires a rock dance that welcomes its guitar solos after 6 minutes of enticing rhythm. Open Land ends this last opus of FD Project with a down-tempo approach that also relies on these patterns of intertwined and delicately convulsive rhythms which make the main charm of ROOTS. Repetitive and magnetizing, Open Land is spinning like an ethereal waltz while offering this delightful balance between the effects of synth and the solos of a more discreet guitar. It's very Tangerine Dream, especially the guitar with its Edgar Froese's perfumes.
The biggest strength of this album is that it offers a music that one tames without difficulty. The rhythms are lively, catchy and melodious, even if they are conceived in the intertwining of a herd of serpents frozen at the same spot, whereas the guitar solos always have this little something inexplicable which brings out here the legendary solos of Edgar Froese. The fans of FD Project will be excited about ROOTS while other EM fans should enjoy this album without too much difficulty and maybe even get into his universe, especially since Frank Dorittke has officially opened his Bandcamp site. The download version is available there, while the CD will be on sale around October 20th.
Sylvain Lupari (September 30th, 2018) ****¼* SynthSequences.com Available at FD Project Bandcamp
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