Sun Electric: Lost Sound (1998-2000)

German band Sun Electric was supposed to release this album around the turn of the millennium. However, as is the case with the music industry, the group had to roll with the executive punches and sit on it. Finally, it’s out, and while electronica might be an acquired taste for some, the band offers up plenty of appetizing genres on “Toninas”, a mix of jazz, dub, lounge and funk with a hint of electronic-meets-industrial overtones sprinkled on top. It’s a precursor to the ambient nature of the songs, including the minimal, almost organic approach to “Lomat”. Yet Sun Electric can rave it up with the best of them, such as during “Sissy” which has that big beat vibe but never quite bursts through the surface. Loops are the order of the day on a few tracks, especially the jerky, jazzy “Ohaya” with some harp accents added. Lush and rich describes “Echolon”, a song that peters out gracefully as it saunters on. And how can you go wrong with a quasi hip-hop-meets-electronica ditty dubbed “Umpa Lumpa”?