Recording under the ensemble name
Rubin Steiner, French electronica wizard Fred Landier became a huge
critical and commercial sensation in his home country and throughout
Europe with his debut album Lo-fi nu jazz vol. 2. Performing live
with sampler, effects and custom mikes tuned to the music of a double
bass player, a trombonist, flutist and Francois Pirault's original
video mixes, Rubin Steiner has played three major festivals in France
this summer (15-20,000 people per show), along with dates in Belgium,
Switzerland, and Germany (at POPKOMM, the equivalent of MIDEM at
Cannes). The group also recently opened for Alicia Keys in Japan,
resulting in another resounding success.
RCA's Bluebird imprint is pleased
to announce the October 8 U.S. release of Rubin Steiner's second
recording Wunderbar 3, following the global phenomenon of its BMG
France predecessor. Blending ambient vibes, electronic grooves and
effects, heavy atmospheres, classic old school soul, trio jazz
stylings and quirky sound bytes, the recording is a clever and
extremely elegant raw pearl whose rich and cozy jazz structures find
their soul mates in improbable, insistent beats.
Selected quotes from French
musical press help further define Rubin Steiner's highly original
fusion of all those elements with just the right touch of exotica.
The Virgin Megapresse said, "Fred Landier is one of the most
creative and touching artists of the French electro-jazz scene."
Coda exclaimed, "He makes us share his taste for iconoclastic
collages and vaporous atmospheres. His second studio album takes us
for a visit into his imaginary world where creation is more important
than the unrestrained search for success." Recording Musician
adds, "What strikes you immediately about Rubin is his talent as
an arranger. First a technician, he's a past master in the art of
sampling and while doing it, he composes his own orchestration from
acoustic sounds."
The experience of this recording
takes the listener from the clever robotic spoken introduction
explaining the concept of the recording ("Please Listen to This
Record," we are urged), through the shuffle groove-based,
acoustic guitar-driven ambient exotica of "Guitarlandia."
It moves on to wild adventures in "Espagnolade" (featuring
an hypnotic urban vocal patois, bold brass and a thumping dance
groove) and "Wonderlande," a realm whose trippy vibe feels
like an old orchestral film score. Along the way, we're invited to
"Tango" (dig those synth vibraphone effects and symphonic
qualities), engage in the "New Bossa" (mixing jazz with a
hip-hop beat), explore "Midi Jazz" (avante garde meets
Latin) and go fully experimental with the mystical "Minellos
(Part 2)." Landier pays homage to two strong jazz influences on
the brief "An Interlude for Charles Mingus" and the closing
track, "Some Strings for John Coltrane."
Fred Landier's discovery at age
13 of the first recording by sampling pioneers De La Soul in England
left him with a burning passion for quirky music. He began his
musical education by listening avidly to the punk sounds of Black
Flag, Sonic Youth and Fugazi, moved on to take a keen interest in
improvised and electronic experimental music, then discovered his
taste for jazz, preferably hard bop.
In the years before launching
Rubin Steiner as a recording entity, Landier presented a program on
Radio Beton in Tours for seven years, offering a blend of free jazz,
musique concrete and disco. He also organized bar concerts featuring
artists like Pram, Kreidler, Spaceheads and Purr, edited photocopied
fanzines with trash layouts and played electric guitar with Merz, an
experimental group who made a number of memorable appearances.
After some initial, self-produced
computer experiments, Landier started to write music for a number of
projects, including work by contemporary choreographers Fabrice
Ramalingom and Daniel Larrieu, and Street Contact, a hip hop dance
company. After the release of Lo-fi nu jazz vol. 2," he got
together in June 2001 with Sylvestre Perrusson (bass, double bass),
Benoit Louette (trombone, flute) and Francois Purault (video mix) to
form the Rubin Steiner Quartet. They began touring and Landier
expanded his reach further by playing DJ sets in clubs all over
France.
Many Ninja Tune artists are
currently re-mixing his songs.
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