Familjen - Huvudet i sanden
(Adrian Recordings)

I'm a big fan of remixes. In some ways, remixing follows in the jazz tradition of improvising upon others' compositions: quoting their musical passages, reworking and rearranging them, sometimes in a way that deviates very little from the original, though, as is evidenced by Pluxus' reimagining of "Det snurrar i min skalle", other times in almost unrecognizable ways. Familjen's tracks lend themselves quite easily to remixes by other electronic artists, though, as I'd assumed, seeing how wide a range of musicians fall into the category "electronic", there are some remixes that are not quite up to the standard of the others. Kasper Bjørke's remix strays so little from the original framework of "Huvudet i sanden" that I am not entirely sure what the point was. The version featuring Adam T's supplementary hip-hop lyrics drags Familjen's track so far outside of the musical veins that made it appealing, to force in the additional lyrics that the remix feels lopsided and schizophrenic. Both reworkings of "Feber" have a very 90s, Moby-esque feel to them, so these songs will trend one way or the other depending on your own personal preferences. The iffy aspects out of the way, the remix album hold some gems: Mike Dow's phenomenal remix of "Det snurrar...", Perfume Unicorn's fantastic and festive reshaping of "Huvudet...", the aforementioned Pluxus contribution - a luxuriously paced, dark emendation, and Boeoes Kaelstigen's 'hey day of the Haçienda'-reshaping of "Det snurrar...". It's a mixed bag, but the last four tracks I mentioned are well worth the sticker price.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson