According to the internet, Akusmi is the moniker of the French-born, London based composer, multi-instrumentalist and producer Pascal Bideau.
I say ‘according to the internet’ as I have no recognition of buying this album, have never heard of Akusmi and, until I started listening to it, didn’t have a clue what it sounded like.
So what does it sound like? Electronic, jazz soundscapes where each song is centred around a single, repeated riff.
It seems Mr Bideau has arranged music for a lot of films and TV shows and that comes through on this record. There are lots of tracks that strike me as being taken from a soundtrack. I know I say that about a lot of albums but to me this really does with its angular instrumental pieces that feel like they fit different scenes in a film - hard to explain.
Some of the songs on this album are just a solid dance beat away from being club bangers! Conversely, tracks like ‘Cogito’ are perfect slices of modern jazz.
This album has been a surprise, both because I forgot I owned it and also because of its contents - weird hypnotic electronica with hints of dance and seemingly improvised jazz brass. I’m not sure what to make of this album, needless to say it will be played again though.
Tracks To Try: ‘Divine Moments Of Truth’, ‘Neo Tokyo’, ‘Longing For Tomorrow’, ‘Cogito’.