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Floris | S/T

Wallpaper music for loungy environments.
CD, United/Zomba

Tekst: Sven Schlijper

Publicatiedatum: 25 april 2002

Some years ago, the-then new musical and lifestyle word 'lounge' turned up describing the wallpaper sound that decorated locations of high-end design — basically Dolce & Gabbana show-off sites: non-disturbing ambience pieces leaning heavily on passiveness, hence lacking up-front beats, but focusing on the 'vibe' of it all, whatever that may be. Lounge is a lifestyle first, with its own dress code and the like. Most of the smooth and slick conversation tracks are quite boring to listen to. But then again, it was the atmosphere, the being there and being 'in' that mattered, remember — not the music per se. One of the best laid-back and listenable albums from that era is Yonderboi's Shallow And Profound. Holland's own Floris has been compared to that musical child prodigy from Hungary. Deservedly so? is the question.

Floris' self-titled debut provides a variety of styles ranging from funk to jazz, with a little bit of pop touch. Floris worked three years on this record, and it is certainly a well-produced piece of work. The combination of old analogue synthesiser sounds with live instrumentation works out perfectly for the down-tempo groovy repertoire. Apart from the technical side of the story, is this record worth listening to? The answer has to be no! No, this again is a piece of music you'd better talk over and leave to be wallpaper. Nice wallpaper, that is, one of the best in the cult of lounge. Yeah, why judge so hard when it wasn't meant to be listened to with attention? My fault entirely, I agree, I must confess. I fail to switch off. I lack the ability to spot, feel, and live a 'vibe.' I need the music to speak for itself. Some guest stars don't manage to save the album. Sure, the beautiful track Weight Of This World, featuring Sarah Bettens of K's Choice, is a nice pop track, the best song on the record in fact. This, however, could very well have been a K's Choice b-side or experiment. This is not to say Floris' music for this song doesn't matter at all. It's just not representative of the album as a whole. Back to the ambience issue: I conclude this music is at its best in the lounge atmosphere described above. This kind of music can be played live, but not at a festival or in a standard (rock) club. One would find oneself in desperate need of a couch to lay back in; the average attention span is just too short to endure this at high volume, in a normal gig fashion. Oh, surely Floris doesn't want to be a stage act of knob-turners. Good for him. But with this material a live band of seven would not be something I'd enjoy. At least, when he keeps it at this below-the-surface non-expressive level. The Sarah Bettens song and the Red Snapper-ish New Years could be jazzed up, as could some others. Then it could amount to something. Even Yonderboi couldn't put on a decent live set that grabbed the audience and held it in mesmerising awe for the full length of the concert. Which brings us back to the comparison mentioned earlier. Well, it might be just silly ol' me, but where Yonderboi managed to enlighten lounge with something more than hype and image — in fact, precisely good music with an edge — Floris is caught exactly in the pitfall of looks and attitude . . . a concept he scarcely manages to pierce. Floris' debut is well produced and a prime example of low-key, down-tempo lounge. For a Dutch guy, this might be some accomplishment, but it is no valuable addition to this branch of music at all. Maybe I should just say it's good make-out music. And then give in to it.

http://www.kindamuzik.net/recensie/floris/s-t-1503/1503/
Meer Floris op KindaMuzik: http://www.kindamuzik.net/artiest/floris