Felix da Housecat
has made no secret of his admiration for
Prince
, and one thing
Felix
has in common with his idol is a chameleonic spirit.
, like
, has not been afraid to try different things on different albums; he started out with house music but went on to embrace everything from electroclash to techno. And
He Was King
, it turns out, is largely a Euro-dance album.
recorded this 2009 release in Antwerp, Belgium, which is a good place to record if you are going for a very European sound -- and that European influence is impossible to miss on infectious synth pop grooves like
"Spank U Very Much,"
"Plastik Fantastik,"
"Do We Move Your World,"
and
"Turn Me on a Summer Smile"
(all of which
produced or co-produced).
has been quoted as saying that he wanted
to be a "fun" album; the abovementioned songs do, in fact, have a strong sense of fun, as does the humorous opener
"We All Wanna Be Prince"
(which combines an obvious
influence with Euro-pop elements). Occasionally,
detours into hardcore rave territory.
"L.A. Ravers"
"Elvi$"
are pure techno, and neither of them go out of their way to appeal to those who aren't seasoned fans of rave music. But the rave-friendly parts of
are not typical of this 46-minute CD on the whole. For the most part,
emphasizes pop accessibility -- and it often does so with catchy, likable results. ~ Alex Henderson