Hey-o-Hansen, The 06 Singles (Heyrec)

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In 2006 Hey-o-Hansen released a series of twelve-inch singles, from which they have now culled six original tracks and five remixes. This two-man circus takes us on a seventy-five minute "Journey into Berlin´s Afro-Alpin-Dubstep-Killersound". I´m not really sure what that means other than they value the beats and bass of Africa and the West Indies as much as they enjoy the native sounds of their Alpine homeland, represented primarily by some wonderfully swingin´ accordian right off the bat on track one, "Moon". But it also tips you off to the fact that these fellows have a wicked and silly sense of humour. Which is nice in dance music, a genre that takes itself all too seriously.

If I understand the genesis properly, originally Hey was a solo act, teaming up occasionally with Hansen. Now they have taken on board the barely-under-control dancehall singer Sir Lord Gordon Odametey and have also been lent a hand by members of Múm from Iceland. As they take on collaborators they take on influences and expand their sound palette.

Further evidence of the breadth of their odd tastes are samples from such unlikely candidates as the leader of the conservative Popular Party in Spain and the regional chief economist and director of social and economic development for the World Bank's Middle East and North Africa office.

Musically, the trio range so far all over the map that you´ll be finding everything from steel drums to brass bands somewhere in among the heady, steady rhythms. The only real miss is the preachy, plodding "Abraxas" - as a jeremiad against slavery one must of course admire its convictions, but it just doesn´t fit in such happy, colourful surroundings.

And just when you think you´ve had too much fun, the remixers take over, all of them working out of Berlin and most of whose reputations have unfortuntely not reached much further. Yet. As with any remix, the art is in doing something with someone else´s ideas as a point of departure. And everybody does, but to be honest none really stand out as work which will break them internationally. If I had to choose a favourite, I´d take Thaddeus Herrmann´s "Jack is a Simple Fellow..." for the great sense of space it creates.

Still and all, I can hardly think of an album you can have more innocent fun with.

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