Read the article directly on Scratched Vinyl

Review:

My Bags is the label launched just a couple of years ago by the French producer Medline. Since that time, the label has been home to some truly interesting hip hop and electronic music releases. Their latest offering comes from Cosmic Analog Ensemble, Les Sourdes Oreilles.

Cosmic Analog Ensemble is the project of one Charif Megarbane, a musical vagabond originally from Lebanon. Playing all of the instruments and recording in analog, CAE has made Les Sourdes Oreilles (which translates to The Deaf Ears) to pay homage to the cinematic scores of the early ‘70s, taking influence from the likes of Isaac Hayes, Dennis Coffey, or David Axelrod, to name a few. As far as contemporaries, this would put Cosmic Analog Ensemble in good company alongside acts like El Michels Affair and Adrian Younge, who all really take the time and make the effort to recreate these sounds and styles in the same way they were recorded back then. As for the album itself, it plays a little bit like a breakbeat compilation, except that it’s all new material. Some compositions feel like fully formed songs, but others feel like they are just pieces, meant to be broken apart by a deejay or producer. No matter which way you slice it, though, Megarbane is certainly a talented musician, and he’s given us some great retro grooves on Les Sourdes Oreilles. He’s got a great feel for arrangements, never allowing the music to get overly busy, and always using each instrument to compliment the greater vision of the song. He’s also got a great feel for laying down some tasty guitar licks, heavy on the reverb. It flows very well, and nothing sounds out of place.

If you have any love at all for the scores of the early ‘70s,
Les Sourde Oreilles will be right up your alley. Cosmic Analog Ensemble has done a great job paying homage and capturing that feeling with this album.