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Gus Gus
ATTENTION
(MOONSHINE)

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The millennial seal has been broken, yet Gus Gus have taken a step back with a techno album that would have been more at home in the early ’90s. Attention is derivative electro that’s solid enough but lacks the forward-thinking imagination and diversity of the band’s earlier outings. Perhaps that’s because the Icelandic outfit has gone from a collective of nine or so rotating members to its present state of three core members with Urdur Hakonardóttir as guest vocalist. Her voice is perfect for a club diva, both powerful and breathless as needed, but she tends to run low on emotion.

The instrumental "IIE" is the disc’s most interesting track, with its jagged-edged beats and harsh and noisy synthesizers — yet it too comes off as dated. Gus Gus’s sound has morphed from the varied approach that brought the catchall term "electronica" into existence by demonstrating that electronic club music didn’t have to rely on sterile drum machines in what now amounts to straightforward canned techno and house. Fans of the first two Gus Gus releases won’t necessarily be paying attention to this one.

BY JOHN LEFLER

Issue Date: November 21 - 28, 2002
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