Review by Sven Kirsten - Author of The Book of
Tiki
Sophisticated and minimalist, whimsical and meditative, modern and
primitive, these are the exotic sounds of Truus de Groot. A world
apart, they create their own universe for the listener to explore,
a place as mysterious as it is playful. They will make you feel
like a European intellectual...or idiot savant, you choose
Review by Jeff Berry (aka Beachbum Berry) author
of the Groglog
What hath Dutch ex-punk rock diva Truus De Groot wrought? One
thing "Rancho Exotica" isn't is yet another postmodern
rerun of the usual Martin Denny lounge music. Leave that to the
retro remix crowd. Truus has what they don't -- an imagination. If
you're looking for something new and different to mix your Mai
tai's by, look no further. Truus has created a new kind of
exotica music, a sonic dreamscape at once primordial and
futuristic, ethereal and corporeal, amped up and mellowed
out. It's the soundtrack for the life you wish you were
leading: a life of moonlit nights on uncharted isles, of
exploring ruined cities in jungle overgrowth, of traveling through
space in interstellar overdrive. My favorite tracks --
"Visitors," "Ua Ahi," and "Mystery Isle" -- put me in a fugue
state I never want out of. And what an orchestra she summons from
the void: Kafiristani monks on horns, Inca shepherds on flute,
Meiji geishas on strings, Alpine maidens on vocals, and ancient
Marquesan warriors, Bantu chieftains, and prehistoric locusts on
percussion -- all mixed down by alien engineers from Alpha Ceti,
in a Chinese opium den recording studio. Check it out!
First there
was Martin Denny, then later there was Throbbing Gristle paying
homage to Martin Denny and hailing him as their prime inspiration.
At first the connection might have been tenuous and hard to
believe but Industrial tribal music owes a lot to Exotica.
What Truus has brought to the table is a new Exotica for the 21st
century applying electronic beats and tribal/industrial thinking
to the loungy/jazzy Exotica realm. The results are pleasant and
authentic establishing Truus as one of the very few modern
musicians worthy of owning the genre description of EXOTICA.
(along with Ken Sasaki, Don Tiki, Ape, Combustible Edison, and a
few others)
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