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Melody A.M. is the debut studio album by Norwegian electronic music duo Röyksopp. It was released on 3 September 2001 by Wall of Sound.
Chilled-out or downbeat acts swept through the electronic scene during 2001 and 2002, prompting dozens of identikit compilations, all conjuring up images of exhausted clubbers returning home early in the morning and enjoying a cup of tea or a smoke after a hectic night out. And although downtempo electronica had always been largely album-based, most of these trackmasters didn't do much on the full-length front.
The Norwegian duo Röyksopp, however, displayed a careful hand with the boards on their 2001 debut Melody A.M.. Röyksopp balances the haunted atmospheres of Boards of Canada with the more traditional "songwriting" sensibility of downbeat specialists like Groove Armada or Koop.
The opener is proof enough, with a chunky bassline undergirding the spooky, ethereal refrain from Bobby Vinton's "Blue on Blue" recorded by some long-forgotten vocal chorus. There's much beauty on Melody A.M., very textured and imaginatively produced to sound like few of their contemporaries; it's saying much to even admit that Röyksopp is occasionally the equal of such otherworldly acts as Boards of Canada or Goldfrapp.
They seem a bit too indebted to the gauzy synths of '70s soundtracks, but there are a few good exceptions, like the distinctly '80s sense of artificial ethereality to the closer, "40 Years Back/Come." Picking up the ball right about where Air dropped it after Moon Safari, Röyksopp produced one of the most intriguing downbeat albums of the year.
Track listing
1. So Easy - 3:44
2. Eple (some versions contain a "hidden track" of talking in the pregap - 3:36
3. Sparks - 5:23
4. In Space - 3:30
5. Poor Leno - 3:57
6. Higher Place - 4:31
7. Röyksopp's Night Out - 7:30
8. Remind Me - 3:39
9. She's So - 5:23
10. 40 Years Back\Come - 4:45
Sample credits
- "So Easy" contains a sample from "Blue on Blue" by Gals and Pals.
- "A Higher Place" contains a sample from "Freedom" by The Tyrrel Corporation.
- "She's So" contains a sample from "Love in Space" by Peter Thomas Sound Orchestra.
- "40 Years Back\Come" contains a sample from "Red Right Returning" by Michael Manring.
Personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Melody A.M.
- Röyksopp – arrangement, production
- Anneli Drecker – vocals on "Sparks"
- Erlend Øye – vocals on "Poor Leno" and "Remind Me"
- Ole J. Mjøs – co-production on "A Higher Place"
- Ole Vegard "05" Skauge – bass on "A Higher Place"
- Rune Lindbæk – extra input on "A Higher Place" and "40 Years Back\Come"
- Marte Rognerud – inner sleeve photography
- Sølve Sundsbø – cover photography
- Tom Hingston Studio – design
Notes
Released: 3 September 2001
Genre: Downtempo, Leftfield, Trip Hop, Ambient
Length: 45:58
Label - Wall of Sound
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