Luciano’s Tribute to the Sun May very well go down as one of the most compelling listens of the last quarter of 2009. The Chilean-by-way-of-Switzerland proves that he is a masterful arranger, sampler and sound designer, particularly when working with vocals of all types. It’s only fitting that this collection begins with “Los Ninos de Fuera”, which is essentally a carefully looped vocal track over syncopated drums and handclaps. It’s the track’s exotic simplicity that indicates the real sophistication of Luciano’s work: a quality that has been consistently revealing itself over the years, release after release.
Of course the Latin and world music elements that are often the trademark of Luciano’s productions are ever-present: it’s no mystery that we are dealing with the other notable South American ex-pat making techno in western Europe. However, the producer shines a huge spotlight on his musical range, most notably on “Celestial”: a 12+ minute opus that begins with a subtle percussive break, evolves into deep-techy house with a soulful vocal lick and then descends into what sounds like a bouncier version of the type of work Matmos did on Bjork’s Vespertine album, complete with lush choral vocal loops and light piano phrases. “Celestial” May be one of Luciano’s finest productions to date and will easily change the minds of the last of the naysayers who quickly associate Luciano with the blandness of the minimal techno world.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Tribute to the Sun works very well as a whole album. As with artists like Burial or Villalobos, you will not find yourself skipping around from track to track here. Luciano takes the listener on a journey, imaging various odes to one of the largest stars in the galaxy and solidifying his own place as a significant force in electronic music.
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