ELECTROMOODS (E)

The French guitar player Eric Minen is an autodidact. He got interested in composing when he joined a band, many years ago. He was a member of a Frank Zappa tribute band and he released Mélodies Urbaines, his first solo album in 2007. On ElectroMoods, his second solo album Minen plays guitars, bass, keyboards and he does all the programming. He's also responsible for the compositions, the recordings, the production and the mastering. This album offers a variety of accessible melodies with influences from new age, jazz and world music. The first track features a keyboard drone while Minen subtly plays and echoing guitar; in the second part only effects and spacey sounds can be heard. In the next track New Electronica you'll hear a muffled bass, then some percussion, in the distance some keyboards providing a new age soundscape in the background. In the last part more keyboards and a second lead guitar; the atmosphere could be described best as new age meets soft jazz. A very gentle, slightly jazzy song is New Horizons with guitars and electric piano sounds sharing the leads, but sometimes they play the melodies together and for a few minutes the guitar is the predominant instrument. Eric Minen plays a rhythm guitar and a bass as well and some soft drum sounds are added. It's Time To Change has an orchestral keyboard drone in the vein of Alan Parsons while guitar and bass play the melodies. Music to let your thoughts go wherever they want to go. The keyboard drone can be heard almost constantly and to my taste a bit of variation would have been a good option here. Purple is a very nice tune with nicely changing chords by the keyboards, while Minen plays the guitar plucking and soloing. This piece has a gentle rhythm pattern and an awesome relaxed atmosphere. Unfortunately this daydreaming atmosphere is disrupted by the introduction of more keyboards and somewhat harsh whistling sounds while the guitar is rather monotone and the barely detectable percussion doesn't seem to match the newly created atmosphere. In Memory is a slightly jazzy pop tune with a nice change in tempo halfway. More shuffling percussion sounds in The Sun Is Going Down, music for a late night in the Caribbean, but in the middle-section there's hardly any percussion. A computer voice and spacey keyboards at the beginning of Infinity - but also popping up a few times throughout - seem to take the music in a whole new direction, but the guitar takes over in the jazzy style we've heard before on the album. These parts remind me of some slower and dreamy songs by Lee Ritenour. The most symphonic and progressive track is The Final Trip in which Minen plays the organ and several other keyboards next to his lead guitars. However, the theme is rather simple, which can be heard throughout the song. Next to his clean lead guitar, also a few passages with distorted guitars can be heard. The album's final track is Mood Closing with predominantly keyboard sounds from outer space and effects, no melodies. The keyboard drone from the first track is there again and some guitars played backwards - so it seems.

ElectroMoods is a nice offering by Eric Minen and is especially recommended to fans of smooth, soft jazz with a preference for new age and world music.