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"I am convinced that the term 'I the self' is idiological and can be dispensed with," the defiant vocoder-voice sings on the first track of Idiology, the new Mouse on Mars longplayer. From the very beginning, it's clear that preconceived notions of electronic music may also be dispensed with. The closest to a fuck-you anthem the German explorers have embarked upon, this smells a lot like punk (albeit digitalized). Idiology's scope and diversity prove my long-held theory that Andi Toma and Jan St.Werner have more in common with visitors from outer space than with other electronic musicians. Given their burgeoning relationship with instruments of the orchestral kind — which continues to develop since the cordial introductions of Niun Niggung — I am also loath to define their music as "electronic." Idiology is a feast of pianos and French horns, trumpets, violins and bass clarinets. There is no absence of vocals, nor of guitar-infused tunesmithery. There is no fear, no abidance whatsoever of electronic boundaries. The record spans time and genre, reinterpreting everything from ska to country-tinged folk as if it were the product of a whimsically inaccurate translation device from another planet, and in the process creates a new musical language altogether.
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