
"Time(c) To Relax - French Downtempo Madness" opens (after a short intro) with "B-side (feat. Funky Frenchman)" a short (2:15 min.) piece with a rich, low-down, Tosca/Kruder & Dorfmeister styled, swanky bass line flanked by subtle, floating synths, mellow kicks and light hi-hat work.
Track Listing:
Furieuse Détente (feat. George B.)
B-Side (feat. Funky Frenchman)
Détendu (feat. Captain Détendu)
Tractopelle (feat. Chuck Moe Reece)
Shyli Town (feat. Popof)
La Vie Est Une Plage (feat. John DVDR)
No Time For Illusions (feat. Professor Oz)
Get Jocelyne! (feat. The Joslyns)
Tsé Tsé (feat. Le Sourire des Hommes)
Nominano (feat. The Mighty Blunts)
Rescue Mix (feat. Funky Frenchman)
Interfloat (feat. The Cheesewursts)
Moondaglob (feat. George M.)
Relax (feat. Dj Guarana)
After that "Détendu (feat. Captain Détendu)" drops in with a French-Island flair of lazy guitar, French-spoken, male vocals backed by light, operatic female tones, and soft keys. This one contains elements from "Le disque qui guérit" by Yvon Yva.
"Tractopelle (feat. Chuck Moe Reece)" features the obscure kats from N.O.W.H.E.R.E. on keys and struts on funky keyed bass, guitar and organ, drifting synth pads, subtle Middle Eastern percussion, female vocal wisps, and a generally jazzy feel with nice, mellow beats to move it along.
The T.I.M.E.C. Collective gets help from Deborah Hunter (keyboards) on "Shyli Town (feat. Popof)", another short-but-nice piece (2:15 min.) that unfolds with echoey bells, smooth, broken beats, and some of the most assertive synth keys so far. The vibe is slightly funky in a sophisticated and soft French downtempo style.
"Get Jocylene! (feat. The Joslyns)" is a nice, laid-back, slow burner, but the humor that comes through in the vocal samples may lose you if you're a serious-minded listener... "The TV set is the marijuana" (perhaps taken from or inspired by Cheech & Chong's film "Up In Smoke" and their fiberweed van - note: the voice is neither Cheech nor Chong). However... the statement is fairly true, television is the opiate of the masses.
"Rescue Mix (feat. Funky Frenchman)" is an intimate, funky, ambient joint, featuring Rhodes organ, super-slow breaks, and minimal, cinematic strings joined by mellow, synth bell keys and spacey synths.
The funky-but-fashionable French downtempo style permeates each track, with some being more ambient and others more dubby. In keeping with Time(c)s unique sense of humor, you'll find some of the tracks have surprising sounds or humorous vocal samples.
Although the occasional humor observed throughout this album may turn off strictly serious-minded listeners, "Time(c) To Relax" is definitely worth looking into for fans of the French downtempo style.
limited edition 500 ex. hand-numbered replica-vinyl CD