- Chilly electronics from a longtime Mika Vainio collaborator.
- Franck Vigroux is a veteran experimental artist in his own right, but he might be best-known for his years-long collaboration with the late Finnish sound artist Mika Vainio. (He was one of Vainio's closest collaborators in his final years.) It's tempting to hear Vainio's influence in Théorème—the Kilo-like waves of distortion on "Carré," the bleeps and diamond-sharp drums of "Nord"—but Vigroux also has his own style: compact, dense and with more melody
Take "VX90," a feast for the masochistic listener anchored by a fearsome low-end fuzz and a dive-bombing melody that brings you to a frothy climax. Pitched between metal, drone and noise, it packs plenty of thrills into six minutes, and hints at Vigroux's lifetime with the electric guitar, an instrument often wielded with a blunt, no-nonsense approach.
Théorème's tracks are brief, experimental and approachable. "TT" emboldens its brittle Pan Sonic template with a brawny background drone, while "Carré" slips and shudders, its distorted textures bunching up until they flood the soundscape. Even "Nord," precise and clean, features melodies that waft like an icy breeze, adding depth to what could otherwise seem like barebones electronics. Parts of Théorème live in the shadow of Vigroux's departed collaborator, but there are hints of something sharp, smart and new forming in his absence.
TracklistA1 Carré
A2 VX90
B1 TT
B2 Nord