On November 3, Rone released his fourth album.Welcome to Mirapolis.
Since 2009 and the release of his debut album Spanish Breakfast, Rone has come a long way. The man we like to call the little genius of French electro has once again brought out a wonderful world from his overflowing imagination. After the shadow and its ghostly creatures in 2015, here is the light and its flamboyant colors. If he proposed to "Leave the city" alongside François Marry in his previous opus, he now takes the listener to a new city straight out of his wacky mind.
A skilfully orchestrated evolution initiated at the Philharmonie de Paris
Never really absent from the music scene, the little protégé of the very good label Infiné released in 2016 the excellent EP "Vood(oo)", a kind of transition between his previous album Creatures, presented for two years both in France and internationally, and this highly anticipated new album. A master in the art of live performance, Erwan Castex of his real name was awarded the Prix des Indés 2017 for his creation at the Philharmonie de Paris on January 14. This exceptional date, beyond offering a journey in his repertoire, revisited in the sandstone of his many collaborations, was the opportunity to play some new titles including "Mirapolis", from this new eponymous opus and whose video was published at the end of September to promote the record.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0aM9bxgcD8 
A magical and promising visual universe
If the name of this new album revives the memory of a large amusement park in the Paris region, closed in the early 90s, the cover seems to bring back the fantastic image that the young Erwan had of this mysterious place by passing by for years without ever entering it. Michel Gondry, to whom we owe this magical illustration and who explains in Libération that "one could say that the structure and graphics of the buildings reflect the rhythm of his music, and that the colors reflect his melodies", wanted to create a " utopian city" with futuristic accents. Without even having been listened to yet, Mirapolis is already seducing. The beauty of the object is undeniable and makes you want to see the world through Rone's child's eyes. Torrdroid Download for PC
Lighter, more pop
"When it came time to talk about this new record, I told myself that it had to be more solar," said Erwan Castex in an interview with Greenroom. For this fourth LP, the desire was to propose something different, in opposition to the dark, heavy and melancholic universe of the previous album. More colors, more light, more lightness. A music perhaps more human in short, more accessible, especially to the ears of his children who, as he says himself, " have certainly created a form of sweetness" in his compositions. No wonder, then, that listening to Mirapolis, a much more pop side jumps to the ears of anyone who has followed it since its beginnings.
The album opens with the title "I, Philip", from a work made for the soundtrack of a short film about Philip K. Dick. In a very cinematic atmosphere, this title that goes crescendo, explores three different sound universes that surprisingly summarize well his productions and what the rest of the album reserves for the listener. A perfect introduction that continues with the complicity of musicians John Stanier and Bryce Dessner on " Lou", an aerial title on which was grafted the voice of his daughter who " made the cry of the wolf all day long at home" and that he ended up recording.
Driven by numerous collaborations
As his albums progressed, Rone accustomed the public to more and more collaborations. Whether purely instrumental, with Gaspar Claus among others, or vocal features, with Alain Damasio on the memorable "Bora Vocal" or Etienne Daho on the sublime "Mortelle" for example, the result is always of a high quality, each part complementing the other perfectly.
On Mirapolis, the number of collaborations is particularly high with five titles sung out of twelve. He dresses on " Everything " and "Faster", with the anti-Trump message, the voice of the American artist Saul Williams who brings a more hip-hop dimension to the electro ronienne that we know. On the track "Waves", the producer undulates the singing of the Israeli Noga Erez on a haunting music, almost reminiscent of the movement of the sea that inspired him during his composition sessions on the Brittany coast.The other male voice on this record belongs to Baxter Dury. The British puts his voice so particular on "Switches", the onvi title of this album, which turns out to be a little melancholic jewel, very orchestrated, whose intro installs in a few notes a theatrical atmosphere, almost dramatic. Share Me for PC
Typical Ronian nuggets
For many, Rone is synonymous with powerful titles, which take you on a strong sonic journey: "Belleville" and "Tasty City" on Spanish Breakfast (2009), "Bye Bye Macadam" and "Parade", probably his masterpiece at the moment, on Tohu Bohu (2012), "Sing song" and "Freaks" on Creatures (2015), "Vood(oo)" on the EP of the same name (2016). So many tracks that have contributed to the recognition he enjoys today.
If Mirapolis exudes a lighter aura than his previous projects, it still contains three titles that will draw on what Rone masters to perfection: the captivating, magical and magical electro that makes you want to close your eyes and escape very far, where the imagination takes precedence over reality. With "Origami", the producer has built a danceable and enveloping sound, charged with emotion, which smells like a club. The title "Mirapolis", meanwhile, recalls rather the lights and other curiosities typical of funfairs, while reviving the child's soul buried, more or less far away, in each of us.If these two titles are among those that we will certainly remember, the nugget of this fourth album is undoubtedly "Brest". Superbly constructed and beautifully orchestrated, always with the help of drummer John Stanier, this title is a pure musical flight. A little gem in the form of a tribute to a city that inspires him and that he particularly likes, as he told the newspaper Le Télégramme : "When I started giving concerts about ten years ago, I was very marked by my concerts in Brittany. The reception of the public is crazy! It's a way of giving something back to those who helped me in the first place." With "Brest" which was revealed in early September to announce the album, Rone has definitely found his Mirapolissian "Parade".
An album as haunting as it is confusing
"Down the cause", the last title of the record, performed by Kazu Makino, flirts again with pop, carried by the sweetness and innocence of his voice which blends perfectly with the haunting and heady composition of Erwan Castex. A beautiful way to close this album, on a touch of lightness and originality, although musically rich and tortured. A joyful melancholy, like this mirage named Mirapolis that will seduce an audience of sweet dreamers, certainly less crazy than those who see in Rone the gifted creator of a poetic techno. They will have to wait to see him on stage to relive these magical and timeless moments of which only he has the secret.
After an exclusive performance at Rock En Seine in August and a stop at the Pitchfork Music Festival last month, the party begins this week with the launch of the Mirapolis Tour. The Parisian date at the Trianon on December 13 is already sold out, but Rone will come to enchant the Zenith on June 15 and will most likely tour the summer festivals.
