Marc Moulin (1942 - )
Sleeve for Moskow Diskow (1978) - Telex
Biography
Born in Brussels in 1942, Marc Moulin is brimming with talent. A jazz musician from a young age, he has produced and composed many French-language hit songs. He is also a radio and TV presenter, columnist and author of books and plays.
A licentiate in politics and economics from the ULB, Marc Moulin started his musical career as a pianist in jazz clubs and festivals. He won many prizes, and set up his own group, Placebo, in the early ‘seventies. Placebo soon acquired an international reputation with the albums "Ball of eyes", "1973" and "Placebo". In 1976, the group performed its final concert.
With Telex, another group that he founded in the ‘eighties, Marc Moulin revolutionized electro-pop and its derivatives. Since then, he has brought out several albums under his name: "Sam Suffy", "Picnic", "Maessage" and in 2001, "Top Secret".
Marc Moulin is also a producer and composer. In particular, he worked with Lio ("Banana Split", "Mona Lisa" and "Les brunes ne comptent pas pour des prunes"), Jacques Duvall ("Comme la romaine", "Je déçois"), Alec Mansion, Anna Domino, Kid Montana, Viktor Lazlo and, more recently, Alain Chamfort.
He is regularly invited to compose film scores for television and the cinema. In addition to his musical career, Marc Moulin has carved out a prominent media career. In 1967, he joined the RTBF to present various programmes: "Cap de nuit", "King Kong", "Radio Cité", and other jazz programmes. He also takes part in the magazine programmes of France Musique (Radio France). He composed the theme tune to "Cap de nuit" (1967), "Dimanche musique" (1969), "Cargo de nuit européen" (1989) and that of the TV news (1990). He is part of the team of “Jeu des dictionnaires" and "La semaine infernale". Since 1997, he has written the "Humoeurs" column in Télémoustique magazine. He has also written plays: "Les aventures du docteur Martin" (in 1997), "l’Ascenseur" (in 2000) and 2 books: "La surenchère (l'homme médiatique)" and "A la recherche du bémol". --http://www.belgium.be/eportal/application?languageParameter=en&pageid=contentPage&docId=25047 [Mar 2005]
Placebo Sessions 1971-1974
Marc Moulin started his career as a pianist in jazz bands during the late 60s. Later he also began playing keyboards and producing records with artists such as
Philip Catherine.
In the early 70s he formed the group called "Placebo". Inspired by the work of contemporary artists, like
Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis, Marc Moulin experimented with combining jazz-funk and electronic instruments.
That resulted in 3 albums, released between 1971 and 1974. Being obscure and rare, luckily all 3 have now been re-issued on one CD and double LP.
Fifteen instrumental tracks bringing together numerous different styles. Like the lounge-jazz with bass guitar experiments on
"Showbiz Suite". The great rare-groove of "Aria" with melancholic guitars and trumpets.
"Balek" is one weird breakbeat trip with basslines that sound like a didgeridoo but probably come from a completely different instrument. On top of that funky horns and entrancing moog melodies, now that's eclectisicm! A phat bassline freaky synths and an excellent sax make
"Stomp" sound like VERY early 80s synth funk. This track also contains the sound of a spraycan that's being shaked, something that only Dr.Rockit could have come up with, the only thing is that Placebo did it some 25 years earlier! Atmospheric is the keyword for
"N.W." with it's dark bass guitar, bluesy piano and slowly building funk-rhythm that doesn't get to a climax until about 15 secs before the end.
"Dag Madam Merci" is another one of those lounge-grooves with pshychedelic synths by Marc Moulin and
"S.U.S" would be a perfect fit alongside today's future-jazz releases. More on the up-tempo side are the piano jazz-grooves of
"Only Nineteen", the percussive latin freak out track
"Bosso" and the super funky "Temse" with moogs added! And then there's also
"Plotseling", this must be the weirdest track of them all: starting of as a downtempo jazz-break, then adding melodic guitar, distorted trumpets, a 2 min drum-solo and getting back to the jazz-side of things in the end. phew!
Note that Marc Moulin is from Belgium (that explains why some track titles are in Dutch) and later formed another legendary band called
"Telex". They made Kraftwerk-like music in the 80s and their work has been remixed by famous Electro and House producers like Carl Craig, I:Cube,
Glenn Underground, Stacey Pullen, ...
Say Vegin for freestylegrooves
may 2000
Sam Suffy 1974
Marc Moulin had previously led a jazz/rock combo called Placebo in the early 70s-- this was his first solo lp, reissued in 1999 by Counterpoint Records in the UK. Despite all whining to the contrary, Sam' Suffy is prototypical trip-hop: in particular, the second side, "Tohubohu", is a darkly beautiful downtempo excursion, augmented by a field recording of a conversation between a flugelhorn and hippopotamus (!) The first side reminds me more of Weldon Irvine, although maybe more European in direction (Philip Catherine and Jasper Van't Hoff guest on separate tracks.) --Doug Watson for freeform.orgBlue Note Records
EMI Music Belgium is pleased to announce that a new artist has signed with the Blue Note Label, the keyboard instrument player, Marc Moulin.
Since the 1970’s, the pianist and composer, Marc Moulin, has shown himself to be a pioneer in acid jazz. His recordings whether solo or under the name of Placebo, reissued last year on an Counterpointrecords, have delighted collectors and house music DJs.
Just prior to the 1980’s, Marc Moulin changed styles and began to innovate by creating electro pop with the Telex group. The result was five fresh albums that would influence electronic new wave music. The signature smash hits ‘Moscow Diskow’ and ‘Rock around the Clock’ are still a huge success on the dance floors of Chicago, Paris or Tokyo.
1992 was marked by a change of direction. The album "Maessage" illustrates the artist’s interest in ambient music.
2000. Back to his roots. Marc Moulin returns to his jazz origins for new musical inspiration.
Marc Moulin’s atypical career suits Blue Note’s approach. The prestigious jazz label likes to go beyond the sometimes narrow boundaries of the great jazz traditions and explore new horizons. Marc Moulin has always been concerned about innovating and inventing an original musical expression rather than following trends.
Marc Moulin: "I want to combine my preference for jazz with my passion for electronic music. There have always been artists at Blue Note in particular who have latched on to the more modern forms of popular music and who have adapted it to jazz. So I feel close to artists ranging from Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and Eddie Harris to today’s US3, Erik Truffaz and St. Germain".
The results of Marc Moulin’s exploration of new musical adventures are scheduled for the spring of 2001.
CDs and Vinyl
- Top Secret (2002) - Marc Moulin [Amazon.com]
Top Secret is a mixed bag of downtempo jazz treats and sweet-sounding rhythmic forays into the dark of night. With this recording, Marc Moulin craftily blends the sound of processed sexy vocals and collages them against the sounds of muted trumpets, congas, guitars, and lively trap drumming. This work comes alive with a jazz flavor, one that seems to have been used by a variety of performers and producers, but one that is uniquely Marc Moulin. Top Secret is a journey through the kaleidoscopic sound world of 1960s bossa jazz with a taste of Wes Montgomery, George Benson, and George Duke.Marc Moulin's Top Secret seems to be half downtempo 1990s chill recording, and half contemporary jazz, which makes an interesting fusion. This is an interesting recording and one that certainly breathes new life into the genre of acid jazz, or downtempo music. All in all, a fantastic disc. --Matt Borghi for freeform.org - Placebo Sessions 1971-1974 [VINYL] - Marc Moulin [Amazon UK]
Marc Moulin started his career as a pianist in jazz bands during the late 60s. Later he also began playing keyboards and producing records with artists such as Philip Catherine. In the early 70s he formed the group called "Placebo". Inspired by the work of contemporary artists, like Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis, Marc Moulin experimented with combining jazz-funk and electronic instruments. That resulted in 3 albums, released between 1971 and 1974. Being obscure and rare, luckily all 3 have now been re-issued on one CD and double LP.
1. Aria 2. Humpty Dumpty 3. Planes 4. Showbiz suite 5. Balek 6. Only nineteen 7. Phalene 8. Temse 9. Stomp 10. Polk 11. NW 12. Dag madam merci 13. SUS 14. Plotselling 15. Bosso