Review
not since the postal service have we heard an album that joins together electro and pop so perfectly. it's a summer album and we don't say that lightly. mathieu gendreau (electronics) and pieter van dessel (vocals / electronics) are plastic operator. respectively hailing from montreal and antwerp, the pair met at london's westminster university in 2001 where they were both studying audio production. bonding over a shared love of two decades of fine electronic pop music (influences include jean-michel jarre, akufen, the pet shop boys, vangelis, boards of canada, the postal service...) the pair began to make this beautiful music together. --Rough Trade
Product Description
Different Places , is the new album from Plastic Operator that was released on Fine Day Records on May 14th 2007. It s a full, rounded, classy, album, which expands beautifully on the bands catchy but credible electro / indie blueprint. The album includes the much praised single Folder , released on Rob Da Banks Sunday Best label last year, and picked up for use on a Coca Cola advert as well as numerous films. It also includes forthcoming singles Peppermint - with its quirky breakbeats and enormously catchy tune, Home 0207 full of squelchy bass, sing along lyrics and classy choruses and Why Don t You string laden, melancholy, haunting vocals but as with most of this album it sticks in the head in that fantastic way that great classy pop music can! Plastic Operator are the perfect pop group for our times. Internationally minded, technically savvy and most importantly blessed with the ability to sculpt sublimely soulful pop moments from raw digital clay, Plastic Operator may exist in a parallel space to the tired pop pap in the Top 10, but what a wonderful space it is. Mathieu Gendreau (electronics) & Pieter Van Dessel (vocals / electronics) are Plastic Operator. Respectively hailing from Montreal and Antwerp, the pair met at London's Westminster University in 2001 where they were both studying audio production. Bonding over a shared love of two decades of fine electronic and indie music the pair began to make sweet music together. When the course finished Pieter returned to Antwerp to work on sound design for film and play in a few bands, and Mathieu remained in London to work as a sound engineer and record producer, working with a broad cross-section of the UK's musical talent. In 2004, their efforts came to fruition when then the pair released their debut three track CD through a handful of record shops, with Rough Trade making it their CD of the week. Once the tracks were out there in the public domain, things accelerated at a pace no-one could have predicted. The lead track from the CD, 'Folder', had been posted on a web blog, and within weeks Plastic Operator were receiving emails from fans in New York, Mexico City and Bangkok enquiring about the group. Radio stations as far apart as California, New Zealand and Tijuana began championing the song. In London Radio 1's Rob Da Bank began playing the track on his Blue Room show, eventually signing the track to his Sunday Best label.
See all Editorial Reviews