Laurent Garnier - The Cloud Making Machine

Laurent Garnier continues to make impressive strides in techno, even if his albums don't garner the attention they once did. _The Cloud Making Machine_, certainly, is quieter than his more banging productions, but the tracks still display a good deal of thought and attention. The deep modulation in "9.01-9.05" fits perfectly with the moody chords overhead. The solitary drift of "Huis Clos" sounds like a lonely, midnight stroll along the Seine. And true to the nature of clouds, sometimes the clouds lose their way: "First Reaction" doesn't have a real direction and the meandering lyrics don't help. And if you thought that "Controlling the House" would signal a switch into a 4/4 kick drum, you'd be right. It's nice to hear Garnier in his forte, even if this particular track feels slightly bland. Luckily, the rock of "(I Wanna Be) Waiting For My Plane" is anything but bland, even if it does come out of nowhere. So while _The Cloud Making Machine_ isn't Garnier's best work, it still shows he's still relevant after all these years.