Indeed, the ice does break, when Rauhofer plays his first production, a reworking of the Pet Shop Boys hit “Break 4 Love,” which bounces to the tempo of retro pops and clicks through fluid ambience, a refreshing, icy clear track to wash the first round down and clear the palate for the rest of the album.
Dessert begins with the velvety jazz aperitif, “Summer Madness”, the Kool & the Gang track that still sounds as fresh today as it did when it came out 30 years ago (not that I was alive then, but I promise you, it’s fresh). But perhaps the best track on the album is the Rauhofer mix of Yoko Ono’s “Walking on Thin Ice”, reminiscent of the spacy minimalism of Laurie Anderson. Minty…cheesy…I can’t place its flavor, but it’s queer and beautiful, as Ono often is. The last track, from Ani DiFranco, “Leaving on a Jet Plane” is a nice track to end on, a folky ballad unlike anything else on the album, but full of bittersweet parting.
This album is definitely a refreshing and tasty surprise.
Listen to samples of Hear:
1. Waldeck - Wake Up (Original Mix) WMA / RA
2. Mo'Horizons - Superworld (Children's World Replay) WMA / RA
3. Nu Sound - My Beloved (Original Mix Edit) WMA / RA
4. Bonnie Bailey - Can Hardly Wait (Eric Kupper Mix) WMA / RA
5. Peter Rauhofer & The Pet Shop Boys - Break 4 Love (Laroz & Amdursky Mix)WMA / RA
