Dusted Off And Remixed

Another delve into the vaults for a review of Remixed by Mari Boine, first published on 8th April 2006, with newly added video and Bandcamp links.

 

Taken from the latter's artist biog, Mari Boine Persen is a "singer, musician, songwriter and activist from Sápmi, Norway. Her music is infused with her Sami roots (joik), jazz, rock and electronic sounds. Mari has worked with artists like Jan Garbarek and Bugge Wesseltoft, and participated in the breathtaking video clip One World One Voice. Her solo album 'Gula Gula' was released (internationally) on Peter Gabriel’s RealWorld label in 1990."

 

This is what I had to say about Remixed eighteen years ago.

 

 

I confess to a habitual acceptance of remixes and a borderline obsessive desire to track down reworks by artists as much as a band's original material. The result is a vast collection of obscure remixes by the likes of Andrew Weatherall, Slam, Fluke and Orbital, which often make the proverbial silk purse from a sow's ear. 

 

However, it will also frequently lead me to discover more artists and remixers, or just simply appreciate the record in it's own right. Such is the case with Norwegian artist Mari Boine's Remixed. 

 

I picked up this promo CD for a couple of quid, simply because it featured Jah Wobble, Bill Laswell and Biosphere, and thought that any other listening pleasure would be a bonus. What can I say? Ten tracks and just over an hour later and I've been playing it frequently ever since. 

 

 

Chilluminati provide an atmospheric opener in Gula Gula, neatly leading into Jah Wobble's distinctive bass on Cuovgi Liekkas, which roughly translates as 'Radiant Warmth', appropriately enough. 

 

The tempo then picks up with Those Norwegians' funky take on Gulkan Du, before taking it back down for the spine-tingling Alddagasat Ipmilat by Biosphere. Regardless of my familiarity with the artists, each of the remixes complement each other and use Boine's vocals to great effect, wisely tending to leave them intact. 

 

The notable exception is album closer, Ahccai by Phono*, which weaves a single note vocal into a pulsating beat that ensnares the listener. 

 

 

* If you're wondering why the description doesn't match the music via the Bandcamp link above, it's because I've belatedly discovered that the tracklisting on the promo CD I purchased was incorrect. 

 

Phono didn't remix Áhččai (track 10) but in fact Mun Da Han Lean Oaivamos (track 8), which samples Nelson Mandela.

 

Here's the version of Áhččai that I referred to, actually remixed by Future Prophecies aka Richard Thomas and Tony Anthun.

 

And to close my 2006 review:

 

I'm not sure that I'm curious enough to seek out Mari Boine's other releases, but Remixed will be troubling my CD player for some time.

 

 

Truer words rarely spoken. I still rate Remixed in 2024 but to date it remains the sole Mari Boine album in my collection.