lambchops's Full Review: Low Kick and Hard Bop by Solex
After a few years of attempting to “get” Solex, I have come to the conclusion that the music is nearly impossible to entirely understand. Elisabeth Esselink makes music by combining obscure, eclectic songs and sounds together to form something new and challenging. The resulting combination of samples will appeal to only the most open-minded fans of indie pop and electronica.
Esselink made her debut in 1998 and has been relatively prolific in the years since. 1998’s Solex Vs. The Hitmeister was followed the next year by Pick Up. Two years later came Low Kick and Hard Bop which represented yet another foray into the worlds of mixed up, experimental lo-fi trip-hop. Gaze momentarily at the track list below. If that in and of itself doesn’t clue you in to the nature of this album then don’t even attempt to investigate Solex. Esselink’s music represents many musical influences from Bjork to Morcheeba and from Stereolab to Gorillaz. A better although less known comparison would be to MC Honky (aka “E” or Mark Oliver Everett of the Eels renown) who did a similar thing to an equally pleasing end. Esselink is difficult to really put into one musical category simply because of the variety of her songs.
The aural party begins with the song the album is titled after. Low Kick and Hard Bop is a great intro—easy and interesting on the ears, and memorable it combines everything from drum beats, to harmonica, to flute and held together by Esselink’s sharp girlish vocals. Her vision is continued with the direct Mere Imposters featuring a guitar ala Beverly Hillbillies theme, keys, and a jaunty melody it is impressively entertaining. Such is certainly the case with the vastest majority of the songs contained on this CD. Esselink takes forgotten, lackluster, and wholly regrettable music and turns it into something new and wonderful with the help of her innovation and mixing board.
Able to take what I would probably consider to be kitschy at best (and probably crap at worst) and hear the potential and twist it into something new and different with (strangely enough) pop appeal, Esselink is a genuine musical talent. She continues this freak show of a record with the hip, sweet, summery Have You No Same, Girl? Pretend for a moment she were a man named—oh, let’s just say—Beck Hansen. There are the organs, electronic elements, and saunter here that one would expect from an album like Odelay or even the more recent Guero. What however makes this record different is that we know that these are all old songs smashed together, balled up, and spat out in a completely different package.
The melodramatic, muted trumpet and string arrangement that begin Knee-High would at first seem to indicate a song different than it actually is in the end. Esselink sounds like she’s singing in the shower—hollow echoes and all. However, the xylophone taps and heavy drum-n-guitar turn the song into a wild adventure through spy movies and surf rock alike. This uninhibited child-like glee that Esselink clearly gets from her many muses is apparent throughout this song and many others on Low Kick and Hard Bop. Still with the trumpets, Esselink continues to impress with Shoot Shoot! There is a little something here for every listener fascinated by ultramodern pop.
Comely Row is another great song this time boasting a melody that would have been at home on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. Different still is Ease Up, You Fundamentalist! which backs a beatnik spoken word with jazz. Around every bend, Solex provides me with something to enjoy and pull apart. At the same time I realize I’ve never heard any of the songs sampled, Esselink’s mixes are oddly familiar. The Dot on the I Between the H and the T is an immediately satisfying smooth jazz amalgamation with guitars, synths, pianos, and bass sections which come together seamlessly. Good Comerades Go to Heaven is the most playful of these fifteen songs. It’s not as easy or immediate as most of the other songs, but I’m fascinated by the keys and percussion and I can’t help but realize that it sticks with me long after the song is done.
Low Kick and Hard Bop is strong from start to finish. As it nears the end, I love the lighthearted and diverse pop release provided by Ololo and the chaotic, open-eyed glee of Look…No Fingerprints! There are no individual tracks that truly stand out. It is an overall brave, weird, fascinating, and amazing album given to the world once again by the Dutch mix mistress Esselink. If you are looking for something your friend haven’t heard and that in indescribable yet totally cool pop then this album should suffice (as should Pick Up and the debut).
More recently, Solex has released two additional well-received albums. The Laughing Stock of Indie Rock hit shelves in 2004 while four-track In the Fishtank arrived in early 2005. While I’ve yet to hear either release, I can honestly say that I’ve been impressed with everything thus far that Esselink has put together (figuratively and literally)—I have no reason to doubt that she will continue down the right path.
Rating: 4.5 stars (rounded up)
Track Listing:
01. Low Kick and Hard Bop
02. Mere Imposters
03. Have You No Shame, Girl?
04. Not a Hoot!
05. Knee-High
06. Honey (Amsterdam is Not L.A.!)
07. Shoot Shoot!
08. Comely Row
09. Ease Up, You Fundamentalist!
10. The Dot on the I Between the H and the T
11. Good Comerades Go to Heaven
12. Cayenne
13. Ololo
14. You Say Potato, I Say Aardappel
15. Look…No Fingerprints!
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