Telex

Immediately following Kraftwerk, Telex ranks as one of the founders of electro-pop and forefathers of techno. But unlike the German quartet, who only ever gave a few of their songs unsatisfactory self-updates on The Mix, Telex eagerly opened themselves up to reinterpretation by the very artists they inspired. It's no surprise that these contemporary producers would be compelled to tinker with those original blueprints. What's amazing is how well they pulled it off. Stacey Pullen and Eddie Flashin' Fowlkes give the disco Germans a quick Detroit techno polish, while Juan Atkins turns in a guitar-heavy version of "Brainwashed" that points more toward his R&B-leaning, latter-day Model 500 recordings. Elsewhere, T-Power runs it all through his typical breaks machine, and Morgan Geist smoothes off every last edge of "Rendez-Vous Dans l'Espace," creating an unfamiliar mix of Teutonic vocals and deep house vibes. Things get even more postmodern as Buckfunk 3000 loops up the Telex cover of the classic Bill Haley & the Comets single "Rock Around the Clock." As a total package, along with the first volume of this collection, I (Still) Don't Like Music is a well-rounded and perfectly executed remix collection. One wonders why the same can't be said for most other projects of this nature. ~ Joshua Glazer, All Music Guide