Music Reviews
Kikumoto Allstars

Kikumoto Allstars

House Music LP

Gigolo

It’s 1997, Acid House rules the dance floor, and Mayor Glenda Hood outlaws raves in Orlando after Rolling Stone declares Central Florida the dance capital of America. The X may have been here in Disney-ville, but the music flowed from Chicago, a city better known for roots rock and polkas. While I don’t know if these guys were even legal in those days, they’ve gone back in time and grabbed the right vibe. I choke a bit on calling something a mere decade old “retro,” but The Kikumoto Allstars pulse with those fat fuzzy caterpillar bass lines, peaking crescendos, and the sense that this music grooves from human input and not just a bunch of C code running on a drum machine. Most cuts have a vocal; it alternates between a dreamy female (“Warehouse Days,” “Can’t Stop the House”) and a sexually suggestive, macho aggressive guy (“Everybody,” “Jack”). The noteworthy instrumental track is “Last Train To Chicago,” which brings back the hyper-glossy computer animations that populated the Mind’s Eye animation series. While digital production and digital animation have improved significantly in the decade, guys like Producer and DJ Cam Farrar can make the old sound as magical as ever.

Kikumoto Allstars: http://www.myspace.com/kikumotoallstars


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