Gez Varley – Bayou Paradis

It's 2021 - and this album is 20 years old. The equivalent of my being 16 years old and being given Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. So - has modern music barely developed or is this a timeless crystalline slab of musical perfection? I expect that it's a slight mix of the two - with a big dollop of 'it's always been a part of my musical landscape' which I've brought with me over all these years. A subtle palette of basic elements, classic techno elements built around a 'drum' model, rhythm, pace, feel, the heart beats, formed into long elegant glittering bubbling fizzing shuffling shafts of light that gently grow and evolve, darken and reduce, bloom and vanish. It's like an infinite magisterial being has come to earth and is using our basic guttural language of barks to tell us of beautiful things beyond our comprehension. An album I keep coming back to. It's a masterpiece - a humble and understated great artwork.

the track titles are inspired by the 1999 video game Shadow Man

Violator & Asylum share a bit of DNA with Slam, Snapshots E.P in my opinion. Nice stuff

Incredible album. Lush + hypnotic, with gorgeous artwork to match.

Bayou Paradis probably won't have any trainspotters demanding to know what you're playing, but the consistent quality throughout all tracks is impressive. Solid, flowing tracks. Techno to propel the night forward and deeper.

The most enchanting aspect of this record lies in how it is minimal expressed with an overwhelming lushness. At times, there's almost a Maurizio/BC vibe going on. Like a lot of BC stuff, if one slows down the speed, there's an island/reggae balearic sound to it. Great release-- much of his other work (besides LFO) is sub-par in comparison, in my opinion.