Search - Jean Michel Jarre :: Teo & Tea

A real mixture - sublime and bland in equal measures

J. Aitcheson | Wiltshire, England | 10/08/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

""Téo & Téa" is Jean Michel Jarre's first album of entirely new material since "Geometry of Love" (2003). As someone who enjoyed both that album and "Sessions 2000" before it, I was interested to see what new directions Jarre would take with this one. In truth it is difficult to pin down any particular style or theme running through the album: tracks range from dance to trip-hop, ambient to simply undefinable.



The album opens very strongly with the upbeat "Fresh News" followed by the excellent title track. This latter (as well as its longer mix, the bonus track "Téo & Téa 4:00 A.M.") is easily the highlight of the album, combining the quirkiness and strong melodies we have come to love from Jarre with a catchy dancefloor beat. Much further down the tracklist, "Vintage" will straightaway remind long-time Jarre fans of Chronologie 2 & 4. Similarly, the minimalist bassline on "Beautiful Agony" is heavily reminiscent of Equinoxe 6, and its sensual vocals (provided by Jarre's wife) will certainly catch your attention - although they become more wearing after the first listening.



While there are these flashes of brilliance, however, there are also a number of tracks which are either unoriginal or unimaginative, or both. Some, though not bad in themselves, come across as highly derivative: the overuse of synth strings and clap-track in "Touch to Remember" would not sound out of place as a backing for almost any hip-hop song in the charts; the ambient "In the Mood for You" sounds like any other chill-out track. Some tracks appear to be merely filler: the uninventive two-minute "Gossip" springs to mind; "Partners in Crime, Pt. 2" sounds merely like a prototype version of Pt. 1.



Opinion has been extremely polarised on this album - as it always is on any new offering by Jarre. One of the problems is clearly that while there are a number of good tracks (and one or two great ones) there are also a number of very bland or uninspiring ones (though actually few completely awful ones). To my mind it is no surprise that the most minimalist tracks are among the most forgettable, and that the more interesting ones are those with the greatest range, depth and colour in their soundscape. Such depth, after all, is what Jarre has always excelled at.



All in all, "Téo & Téa" is a real mixture and very difficult to classify. On the whole, however, I would say that it is at least a respectable album, and if it is not Jarre's best work, neither is it his worst. As a final word of warning for those considering buying the CD+DVD version, the DVD contains no special features or visual effects to complement the audio, and so unless you particularly want the 5.1 surround experience, there is a lot to be said for buying the CD-only version instead and saving your money."