Ok, you can expect a proliferation of summer-themed singles… well, in the summer, but from a guy who goes under the pseudonym of Les Techno?
Well, no need for scorn if you are aware that the guy behind that mask is somebody who’s been coming up with a series of releases that on one hand have their tongue deeply behind their cheek, but at the same time share a great sense of what cool pop with a David Lynch-like subversiveness should sound like.
No exception with “In The Sunshine.” And no real techno. You see, Les’ vision of techno seems to be taking what was great technology (and music) of the ’80s and modernizing them for the current times. He has a groove in there, something Psychedelic Furs or Talking Heads would have come up with ‘back then,’ but instead of swarming electronics over those grooves, he brings in some jazz-tinged guitar, as if you have deconstructed George Benson sound and then re-built it to fit into the more modern view.
Quite a lofty proposition, you might think, but it does work. And considering his previous track record, it all actually makes sense. Besides his own releases, Les made hip-hop tracks with rap artists Run-DMC (Profile), Mobb Deep (Loud/RCA), and Onyx (Def Jam/Sony) (among others). He did a Red Hot Chili Peppers remix (Higher Ground), worked with R&B artist Ava Cherry and with the late, legendary funkmaster Bernie Worrell (Downtown, Virgin/EMI).
So it actually makes complete sense that this one works.
