Peder / ‘Dirt & Gold’
CD / MP3
Fake Diamond / Released November 8th 2010
This is Peder’s second LP. Not counting the Grammy-winning comedy album Gramsespektrum. There are also several soundtracks scored by him. On top of that, he’s spent time in front of the camera for film and TV, while his life behind a lens involves snapping for labels like BMG, K7!, Welt and EMI.
That he’s also remixed for the likes of DJ Vadim and Beastie Boys should now be joining the dots that make up his sound, so we’ll proceed with the low-down on this rather obscure release. It’s an inspirational, damn-near life affirming listen that’s two parts cinema and one part smokey, reefer room music.
If you’ve decided against bolting out the door in the hope of grabbing a copy, then we forgive you… And five minutes should be enough to convince anyone that’s what they need to be doing, at least once it hits stores. Because from the word go we’re taken to some balmy, Deep South swampland, as a drawling rhythm confirms this is what the first word of the album title really should sound like.
Vocalists such as Oh Land and Signe Marie bring a touch of femininity to the funk-infused Love Lost City, and Daylight‘s Nawleans funeral parade respectively, with the latter grabbing any accolade for Sombre But Addictive Track of the Month. We’ve always thought we were the only ones who secretly wished there was such a thing. But considering what follows- namely Jacob Bellens’ melancholic lyrics set to the strolling snare, gentle piano and shrill strings of Reverse Your Diamonds– it’s obvious Peder Pedersen would do well out of it.
In contrast, title track Dirt & Gold would be at home in a 1940s club, or perhaps accompanying the credits to a Bond film from yesteryear. It’s easy to think of Funky Monkey’s collaborative work on the Join Us In Tomorrow album, but that would unfairly suggest everything the producer has provided here is not wholly original. One listen to Heroin, which whips up something of a psychedelic atmosphere around R.Olsen’s declarations of love, proves that this is a disc of unnervingly different sounds. Better still, it all makes perfect sense heard as an album or stand alone tracks, as if tricking your ears into believing there’s a familiarity that doesn’t exist.
The choice offering from all 13 would have to be Hello Mr Movie Director, My Name Is Peder And This Is My Friend Asger Baden, though that’s not too easy a decision to make. Nevertheless, it sounds fantastically like walking onto the set of an electronic Western, reeking of Weatherall, Howie B, Yann Tiersen and just about anyone else who’s ever made music that belongs on the big screen. Much like the rest of the compositions that make up this stunning collection, there’s nothing to be said after finishing, other than ‘wow’.
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