« Excellent de bout de bout, psychédélique, pop, funky et addictif, Celestial Electric est une magnifique réussite. » -Paris DJs
“Excellent from beginning to end, psychedelic, pop, funky, and addictive, Celestial Electric is a magnificent success.” -Paris DJs
Version française :http://www.parisdjs.com/index.php/post/Interview-de-AM-Shawn-Lee-FR
English translation: http://www.parisdjs.com/index.php/post/Interview-of-AM-Shawn-Lee
« …groove catchy et paradoxalement alambiqué… » –IndieRockMag
“catchy and paradoxically convoluted groove” -IndieRockMag
We are using Naïve’s January 24th French release to tell you about the first collaborative album between the Californian singer and the English magician from soul/funk label Ubiquity, available digitally for listening via Bandcamp since last September.
The names on the case don’t deceive, it’s indeed AM, soul/pop songwriter based in LA who leads the dance on “Celestial Electric,” and a reserved Shawn Lee fits into the Californian’s romantic and iridescent universe in order to transcend the psychedelic influences already implicitly present on [AM’s] 2010 album “Future Sons & Daughters,” thanks to the vintage sense of arrangements that we’ve known him for since the first beats of “Shawn Lee’s Ping Pong Orchestra.”
A suspicion of the easiness of listening to tradition, stellar coats, some funky touches from inexpensive keys, the Londonian’s contribution is not limited to these lo-fi illuminations since he supplied, by e-mail, the drum lines on which AM composed his songs, accentuating the ensemble’s catchy and paradoxically convoluted groove. As usual, all is not as simple as it seems on “Celestial Electric,” nevertheless it obviously and immediately captivated Rob Garza, electro-lounge big shot responsible for the American release of the album on his own label ESL and the duo’s presence on the first part of the Thievery Corporation tour last summer.
The retro-futuristic artwork is perfectly in tune with the duo’s world and it is being given away in diverse, limited packages detailed on Bandcamp. We owe it to the excellent Andy Votel, contacted by the two friends after they discovered a shared passion for the electro/retro/psychedelic treasures uncovered by his label Finders Keepers. Justly, the recent, whole Music Minus Music was mixed by the boss himself and you can listen to some excerpts here: http://www.finderskeepersrecords.com/discog_musicminusmusic.html
« …petite merveille de pop sucrée et aux effluves 70′s dont il ne faudrait surtout pas se priver… » -Des Chips et du Rosé
English translation: “…little 70s-scented, sweetened-pop wonder that we should not deprive ourselves of.” -Des Chips et du Rosé
Opinion: If you loved MGMT’s first album, then you should thoroughly enjoy the first album by AM & Shawn Lee, the meeting of an English and an American who bring together their tastes and their know-how in order to create this little 70s-scented, sweetened-pop wonder that we should not deprive ourselves of. Primarily because this album, a very easy first, opens up arms-wide, and then the complementary duo shows that they know how to make their old keys sound perfect, to pace their guitars or drums, plus the irresistible vocals (Bee Gees-style), give life to luminous songs, at the time groovy, romantic, and melancholy in the style of good old Italian soundtracks of the 60s and 70s which the group seems to love.
Everything in this album seems easy; the tracks follow each other at breakneck speed, and the pleasure stays intact until the last piece. Impossible to miss!
“…un album coloré, à la production très innovante, entre bossa, soul, et pop vintage.”—Start Up
English translation: “a colorful album, producing highly innovative combination of bossa, soul, and vintage pop.” —Start Up
People know Shawn Lee, superprolific songwriter and passionate about fun and vintage soul. AM is a guitarist and singer originally from New Orleans who played with Caetano Veloso and opened for Charlotte Gainsbourg. Their explosive meeting offers a colorful album, producing highly innovative bossa, soul, and vintage pop. A delight to savor without moderation.
“a dozen beautifully written songs”- 4 Stars Album Review Music OMH UK
“an electro-soul classic that also encompasses pop, soul, funk, jazz, Brazilian tropicalia, Turkish psychedelia and vintage soundtracks.”-Indie London Album Review 4.5 Stars out of 5 Stars
“…a bright and upbeat album full of catchy hooks, sunshiny melodies, Latin American-inspired grooves, and funky rhythms.”—Matthew, Turntable Kitchen
You don’t even need to be on the same continent these days to record an album. American AM and Englishman Shawn Lee prove this on ‘Celestial Electric’.
When singer/songwriter AM heard producer/multi-instrumentalist Shawn Lee’s Music & Rhythm on the radio in the US, he contacted him and quickly a friendship emerged which resulted in the aforementioned album for which both parties recorded in their own hometowns of Los Angeles and London.
Both gentlemen share a love for groove sixties and seventies soundtracks, which you can clearly hear on ‘Celestial Electric’. Enchanting rhythms for drums and percussion are combined with subtle synthesizer and guitars. AM’s lush and somewhat distant vocals top it all off.
The result has a real warm vintage sound. You could imagine AIR’s classic album ‘Moon Safari’ would have sounded this way (and AM actually toured with AIR recently) had they recorded it in the seventies.
This album is laid-back and a incredibly well produced product. (Co-produced by AM and Shawn Lee) It works well for a quiet Sunday afternoon, yet it is exciting enough not to be just background music. Hopefully this collaboration will bring us more goodies in the future.
«Un road-trip halluciné sans overdose. L’équilibre parfait. À savourer en mode « repeat ».»–Clicanoo, (Île de la Réunion)
English translation:
“A hallucinogenic road-trip without overdose. The perfect balance. Enjoy it on repeat.”—Clicanoo, (Island of Reunion)
Unity makes strength. That’s not very new, but it’s really what comes to mind after putting this record on the turntable. In appearance, and in listening to their respective works, nothing predestined the meeting of these two outstanding musicians. AM is a songwriter living in Los Angeles. Shawn Lee is a doctor of vintage sounds walking around the streets of London. If not a similar path, it would seem it is their common love of retro music and French and Italian soundtracks from the last twenty years that has sealed their pact. To our delight, especially for our hatches, which can’t help but move to the vintage groove, the smooth sound of the 60s and 70s. Each from their side of the world, the two artists worked on Celestial Electric. As soon as Lee found a good percussion rhythm and the right drumbeats, he sent them to AM who hurried to stick on the lyrics, strings, and of course a good dose of old-school synth, and sent it back to the first [Lee] to embellish and to finish the whole thing. Twelve tracks later this transatlantic collaboration makes us part of a formidable mix. A sort of timeless pop, the fruit of a fusion that cannot leave you unmoved. When people tell you that Mardi Gras is a day where you eat duck confit, in brief, it shouldn’t be a frequent occurrence. A good pan of ravioli and everyone in bed. Although sometimes small squares of pasta with meat and tomato sauce can be a great help, there is a better chance of becoming addicted to the cuisine in the kitchen of our two leaders. A tasty blend that goes to the gut, perfectly ripe and tangy. Here, each track envelopes the body, romanticism without marshmallow. Comedy without heaviness. A hallucinogenic road-trip without overdose. The perfect balance. Enjoy it on repeat.
A mixtape from us to you, via Clash Music Magazine. Contact us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/amandshawnlee and let us know what you think of our set.
Good thing we bonded over similar taste in music, or this could have been difficult.
