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| S o n g s , T r a c k s |
| A r t i s t s , P e r s o n n e l |
| C o m m e n t s , N o t e s |
2006 CD EMI 69994
2006 CD EMI 094637309223
2006 CD EMI 094637381724
2006 DVD EMI 823259
Sixth album from the one-man ambient electronica project ofRomanian Michael Cretu, who hit the big time in 1991 with the worldwide smash 'Sadeness'. He has since sold millions ofrecords with his fusion of dance and sacred musics and is recognized as one of the originators of the now ubiquitous chillout genre. While this new release remains in much the same vein as before, this time there is somewhat more of a trance influence and the vocals are now almost exclusively in English.
Released in 2006, Enigma's sixth album, A POSTERIORI, stays in the same techno-tinged vein of its predecessor, VOYAGEUR. On these 12 songs, sonic architect Michael Cretu focuses on synth-heavy grooves more than on New Age atmospherics, resulting in one of Enigma's more dance-oriented outings. Stand-out tracks include the house-influenced "Feel Me Heaven," the goth-leaning "Dancing with Mephisto," and the beat-driven "Hello and Welcome." Those seeking the act's exotic, dreamy sound (a la MCMXC A.D.) will find it bookending the record with "Eppur Si Muove" and "Goodbye Milky Way," but, for the most part, Cretu seems content to offer up tracks that are tailor-made to fit perfectly into the late-night playlists of European clubs.
CD-Universe
Sixth in a series of never-quite-the-same recordings from Michael Cretu, the Bucharest-born electronic musician/studio wiz known as Enigma, A Posteriori has the capacity to delight one camp of Enigma devotees while it perplexes another. Less overtly sensual than earlier recordings and devoid of female singers in lead-vocalist roles (no Ruth-Ann, no Sandra), A Posteriori nevertheless stands as a worthwhile recording that at its best moments handsomely displays Cretu's talents for effective songcraft and imaginative sound design. The 54-minute disc--an ode to science and discovery rather than brainy erotica--launches with two impressive instrumentals, "Eppur Si Muove" ("and yet it does move," a phrase attributed to Galileo following his heresy conviction for asserting that the earth rotates around the sun) and "Feel Me Heaven," gorgeous tracks that are part audio space probes, part pulsing Euro electronica. Momentum wanes (or chills) until Cretu strings together a series of tracks that use a heady amalgam of ambient, techno, dance, and rock textures: "Hello and Welcome," "20,000 Miles Over the Sea," "Sitting on the Moon," and the dense, edgy "The Alchemist," which evokes notions of a 21st-century version of Ultravox. "Moon" stands out in particular, guided by a subtle pop melody that exudes the gentle irresistibility of Dido's best work. Cretu wisely limits (or eliminates) the use of Gregorian chants and ethnic voices, once-fresh ideas now demoted to gimmickry. He lets his own voice, a raspy take on Peter Gabriel, carry this disc's three vocal-driven tracks to mixed effect. While not everything glitters here, enough does that A Posteriori warrants investigation by earnestly inquisitive Enigma followers.
Terry Wood - Amazon.com
Michael Cretu scheint es mit den Sternen zu haben: nicht nur die Verkaufszahlen seiner CDs bewegen sich in astronomischen Sphären (35 Millionen) sondern auch die Stücke seines sechsten Albums A Posteriori. Obwohl dort die Luft schon ziemlich dünn und die Materie leicht wird, trifft er den Nerv genau jener, die Abwechslung vom bösen, erdenschwere Alltag in der Schwerelosigkeit seiner Musik suchen. Michel Cretu, der Raumschiffkommandant auf intergalaktischer Mission, als musikalischer Botschafter zwischen den Kulturen.
Esoterik, New Age, gregorianische Gesänge und, wie jetzt auf A Posteriori, einige liturgische Gesangspassagen aus dem Computer, sind die Zutaten, aus denen Michael Cretu alias Enigma die Essenz zusammenmixt, um die Hörer in den Bann zu ziehen. Gerne bezeichnet es sich selbst als Alchemisten, weshalb sich Vergleiche mit der Gestalt des Parfumeurs Grenouille aus Süskinds Rührstück “Das Parfum“ geradezu aufdrängen. Denn genau wie dieser besitzt Cretu nicht den Hauch eines eigenen musikalischen Geruchs und muss mindestens fünf andere Stilrichtungen meucheln, um etwas Eigenes zu creieren. Nicht ohne Stolz berichtet er im Interview, dass selbst die Gitarren aus dem Synthesizer stammen und der Gesang digital ist: “Stimmen sind für mich Sounds und Effekte, -mehr nicht. Diese künstlichen sind zwar assoziierbar an menschliche, aber irgendetwas wirkt eben doch störend, anormal.“ Dennoch ist auf dem Enigma-Raumschiff alles im grünen Bereich, denn “Die musikalische Vision Enigmas lebt von der positiven Irritation“.
Die tatsächliche Neuerung auf A Posteriori besteht darin, dass Cretu sein altes Studio mit 55 Kilometern Kabel abgeschafft und gegen ein kleines eingetauscht hat. Laut Booklet ALCHEMIST getauft und dahinter in Klammern mit der Erklärung versehen “all in one computed mobile studio“. 12 elektronische Stücke mit einer Gesamtlänge von knapp einer Stunde Länge sind herausgekommen. Stilistisch angesiedelt im Ambiente von Geistlichkeit und Würde, zwischen mittelalterlichen Gesängen (“Eppur Si Muove“) und arabischen Einflüssen (“Good Bye Milky Way“), sowie dem weltlich-lasziven Spielraum von Chill-Lounges und Clubs (“Message from IO“, “Dreaming of Andromeda“, “Northern Lights“). A Posteriori, das ist musikalisch nicht nur eine sichere Bank für die BR-Space-Night im Fernsehen, sondern garantiert auch für die Laufstege der internationalen Haute-Couture. “Enigma is the tripping world of imagination!“ bescheinigte Michael Cretu niemand Geringeres als die japanische Ausgabe der Modezeitschrift ELLE.
Andreas Schultz - Amazon.de
Enigma records must sell here in the States. In Europe, where virtually anything goes, they do; but here, one has to wonder after five albums that are only subtly different from one another, along with countless singles and 12" remixes, what's left to engage the imagination. Such is the case with A Posteriori, which in Italian means anything from "what comes after" to "behind." Dedicated to "all visionaries of human race" (sic), A Posteriori is once again beautiful in its sonics, textures, and grooves. Michael Crétu does almost everything here save for a couple of recitations. Once more, the songs of Enlightenment composers such as Gesualdo and Monteverdi are sampled in the tranced-out mix. Are they prayers? Are they amorous songs? Unless you can understand Latin or Italian, there's no way of knowing. But Crétu has always been able to weave together the spiritual and the carnal, and it's his trademark. The more obvious trance and house beats are a near constant. One has to believe that if the folks in Tangerine Dream would have started in the 1990s instead of the 1960s, they'd sound something like this, as many of Crétu's pulsing textures are reminiscent of Tangerine Dream's Stratosfear and Tangram years. While the sound Crétu employs is now familiar, perhaps listeners should be thankful for it. He's managed to find something that works, and goes for it with gusto. Perhaps nothing on this set is as striking as "Remembrance," but then who would ever want to hear that cut again? "Feel Me Heaven" is a wild, pulsing, throbbing trance cut that blends everything listeners know of Crétu's previous music into a lovely whole. It is followed by "Dreaming of Andromeda," a slower though no less hypnotic slice of chilled house. Some things here seem just plain dumb -- "Dancing with Mephisto" and "Sitting on the Moon" feel more like new age cuts than anything else. Crétu's vocal on the latter sounds like Robbie Robertson's from his solo albums. The glissando guitar that opens the completely dancefloor-driven "Invisible Love" works well, but Crétu's vocals are irritating. The shifting dynamics in "The Alchemist" make it one of the most compelling cuts on the disc, and it is a perfect candidate for an extended remix by some wise and imaginative soul. The bottom line: if you like the Enigma sound, this will be up your alley, full of the things you may seek out in a recording, but there is little new here.
Thom Jurek - All Music Guide
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