The label Staubgold's second sampler in as many years,
Music out of Place comes this close to redefining this promotional format. First of all, it offers more than a mere sampler, since more than half of the 50 minutes are devoted to upcoming releases and previously unreleased material. Second of all, the track list has been cleverly assembled to provide a varied but coherent listening experience. The only tracks to break the pace are
Faust's raucous "Nervous" and Sun's "Reach for the Sky," a first taste of
Oren Ambarchi's singer/songwriter pop project. If they don't blend into the track list as well as the others, it is for good reason. Collectors will be interested by unreleased tracks from
Joseph Suchy (a nice, soft guitar piece) and
Ekkehard Ehlers, a mix of
Klangwart's "Im Garten" by
To Rococo Rot, and a previously unheard appearance by Ras Donovan on Mapstation's "Gravity." The remainder of the album is a selection of well-chosen tracks by F.S. Blumm,
Harald "Sack" Ziegler,
Thilges 3,
Institut fuer Feinmotorik,
Oren Ambarchi, Scott Horscroft, and Reuber -- from quirky naive pop to experimental soundscapes. If you need proof that Staubgold is a leading label in creative electronica music (with forays elsewhere), you get it here. ~ François Couture