Gaspard Auge Escapades LP

Gaspard Augé, best known as one half of Justice - the duo that united rock and rave and whose dancefloor smashes defined a generation - is releasing his debut album. Escapades is an instrumental album whose sound will be familiar to Justice's fanbase, echoing some previous works and inspirations of the cult duo. It sounds like a UFO landing from another galaxy or time, a baroque masterpiece that reimagines European classical music for this century. Gatefold sleeve.

Augé draws from the salad days of French house as well as the golden eras of space disco and prog rock all at once, crafting flashy, fanfare-like productions packed with intricate details and insistent rhythms, proving that he hasn't lost his touch for creating maximalist dance music.... For an album that thinks big, Escapades avoids being a sprawling mess, as the songs are incredibly focused and immediate, never trying to stuff too many ideas in, and never overstaying their welcome. It's far more mature than the harsh electro-house of Waters of Nazareth-era Justice, but it feels like a return to that level of creative inspiration.