With his ninth album in ten years, Lemongrass goes back to his roots he first musically explored with his classics „Lumière Obscure“ and „Voyage au Centre de La Terre“. In contrast to his previous releases and counteracting the present trend he does without vocals, draws heavily from jazz influences and gives way to amazing and sparkling ideas.
In spite of his new approach, „Filmothèque“ is once again a true Lemonglass album which captivates with imaginative arrangements. Each track opens a new door to virtual worlds, leading the listener straight into cineastic plots full of breathtaking landscapes and charismatic characters. The panoramic view ranges from black&white vintage detective stories to Japanese animation art, modern science-fiction and love stories from daily soaps. There’s plenty of room for melodramatic turns – and some of the movies evoked still wait for being directed. At the end of the day there is no limit to the listener’s imagination. And - for goodness sake - without the interruption of dreary commercials.
To get a first impression of the masterpiece, you best tune in to „Salon de Musique“, a track which holds most of the album’s powerful ingredients: beautiful arrangements, jazzy elements and a fascinating story behind every single beat. Stronger love vibes (peppered with James-Bond-style suspense) can be admired in „Elle et Moi“. Jazzy as never before is the sound of „The Camera“ and „Fritz the Cat“ - opposed by the following „Aloha“ which could be labeled as Lemongrass’ trademark serenity on the highest level. Listen to „Daydreamer“ and you’ll come across the story of a feathery love affair, then switch to „Spaceship“ to discover how majestic a feeling solitude can be. „Les Affaires“ is a deep dramatic bow to the sound of the ‚film noir’ genre while „Streets of Yokohama“ offers some truly sophisticated sound with a mellow funk groove. „At home“ takes you into a stylish living-room heated by a flickering fire and pleases with sparse but smooth horn arrangements.
Merriment is what you feel when listening to „Hot Day“ (reminding of some early Lemon Jelly tunes) but as beautiful as every single track may be, all leads up to the album’s crowning highlight. Since St. Germain’s legendary 1995 album „Boulevard“ there has definitely not been such an awesome jazz-based track as „Grass-hopper“, a cornucopia of stimulating impulses for mind and soul and irresistibly moving your legs. Better keep your dancing shoes at hand!
With „Filmothèque“, Lemongrass continues the legacy of his remarkable success and creates his own genre: space romanticism with a touch of playful Japanese aesthetics. To put it another way: An album to dream of and fall in love with...
