Product Description

As one-half of French electro-pop duo Air, Jean-Benoit Dunckel's otherworldly vocals and gorgeous, honeyed synthesizer textures defined the group's retro-futurist sound. Stepping out on his own under the moniker Darkel, Dunkel has crafted a solo debut as sweetly melancholy and irresistible as the best of his efforts with Air. The album contains a balance ofperfect pop numbers along with darker, more mysterious pieces. Especially surprising is the nearly punk primitive streak of the Stooges-like "TV Destroy". Showcasing a different side from the weightless, post-Bacharach MOR of his former band, DARKEL is eccentric pop in the tradition of Syd Barrett and Brian Wilson.

Track Listing

1. Be My Friend
2. At The End Of The Sky
3. TV Destroy
4. Some Men
5. My Own Sun
6. Pearl
7. EARTH
8. Beautiful Woman
9. How Brave You Are
10. Bathroom Spirit

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #97533 in Music
• Released on: 2006-09-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Darkel is the nom de plume of – and, indeed, title of, the debut solo album from - one JB Dunckel, by day one half of Gallic electronic pop duo Air. Initially hailed as the young princes of post-club chill-out sounds, later Air albums such as 2004's Talkie Walkie would bear the more esoteric influence of cosmic jazz, progressive rock, and the synthesiser sounds of New Age countryman Jean Michel-Jarre. It takes just a quick glance at Darkel's inner sleeve – and the picture of Dunkel posed by an analogue mixing desk in flat cap and ornate shirt, looking every inch the studio auteur – to determine this will be a work of similarly lofty, cape-clad ambition.

Oh, not explicitly so: built from strings, piano, and Dunkel's soft, airy vocal, songs like "Some Men" and the Michel-Jarre-a-like "Be My Friend" seldom lose their sense of composure. But beneath the sweet sentiments of numbers like "My Own Sun" ("I don't need diamond rings/To earn my angel wings") lie the sort of deceptively complex, organic synth-and-strings symphonies that give up their depths slowly. And if that makes Darkel sound somewhat precious, luckily that's an impression neatly dispelled by the cosmic disco of "Earth", or "TV Destroy" – a slice of fuzzy pop psychedelia as endearingly immediate as "Sexy Boy".--Louis Pattison

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Customer Reviews

French boy does his own thing, largely to good effect.
Yes, this does sound like one half of Air, obviously...because it is, but for some reason it sounds like Dunkel has been able to put more of himself into it, knowing that the pressure to deliver Moon Safari 2 is nowhere it sight, and you sense you know him after listening to this album. While it's very similar to Air's post moon safari material, it actually makes the listener pay attention, and has more emotion in it than '10,000hz Legend' or 'Talkie Walkie' had. The songs are simple but show off Dunkel's song writing talent. It's not all good however. Not all the ideas work, and some sound a bit rushed, and you get the feeling he's thrown in an oddity or two to demonstrate this isn't Air, it's just him....so it's a case of taking the rough with the smoooth.
Half of the songs are album tracks, if you know what i mean. 'My Own Sun' by itself is almost good enough reason enough to by this though - a song to put you in a good mood with lyrics like 'All the sh*t is just an illusion'. In a open minded music world 'My Own Sun' would be given a bit more exposure and reach more ears, it's just pure class. 'At the end of the sky' is also a damn fine song, 'Beautiful Woman' is good if a little short, but again is quite upbeat. 'Be my friend' sounds like it should or could have been on Talkie Walkie, in that it's slightly darker/claustrophobic than the songs previously mentioned. 'Earth' is a curious effort with otherworldly instrumentation over a slow heavy beat, but is also a pleasant change, but could have been spiced up a bit, and verges on filler at 6 minutes long. Dunkel's effort as Darkel (and his lispy voice) may not do it for some, particularly for those who hark back to the dreaminess of Moon Safari, but if you view this more as a mini album, and pick out the good bits (mind you, you can happily listen to this all the way through - it's great to have on as you go about your daily business) it's more than worthy of spending a few quid on. A 'cute' and understated piece of work.

Darkel Review
As a massive fan of Air I was really looking forward to getting a copy of this. While it took a while to grow on me unlike most of Air's albums now I can't stop listening to it! Although Darkel has tried to infuse the album with his own character and personality, it doesn't sound a million miles away from his work as part of Air, and the album is all the better for it. In summary if you love Air, you're gonna love this too! Can't wait for the next.

Dire.
If you're a fan of Air and are looking for more, look further. This was really disapointing: dull, repetative and uninspired.

After listening to the album I was left to ask myself "what the hell was that?" If you haven't already bought it, I'd recomend Charlotte Gainsbourg's album, 5:55 (a collaboration of Charlotte Gainsbourg with AIR, Jarvis Cocker, Neil Hannon and Radiohead's main producer Nigel Godrich).