This duo from France delivers beats smeared with syncopated humour that defies the stereotypes of traditional house music; a new freak-house that will keep you dancing and smiling into the small hours.
 
Nôze is Nicolas Sfintescu (machines, cofounder of Circus Company aka DJ Freak) and Ezechiel Pailhes (acoustics, composition, prepared piano). Sfintescu is an original hip-hopper, Ezechiel studied piano at the academy of music in Paris. Both share hip hop and jazz roots which they allow to flow into their tunes, along with a myriad other influences from classical to rock. Their label, Circus Company, was created in 1999 and also releases treats from Nôze friend and collaborator Ark (French minimal/experimental house producer Guillaume Berroyer)
 
Nôze’s live shows are the foundation of the project; the duo storm clubs with their high-energy performances, leaving inspired crowds, and clothes, in their wake. They inject fun and humour into the room as soon as they take the stage with a profusion of precomposed frames, synth lines, prepared piano, and voices, prerecorded or sampled live.
Sfintescu sings and rouses the dance-floor with his breaks, Pailhes, one hand on the keyboard, composes the loops and the vocal additions, their enthusiasm permeates the space completely, infecting everybody.
 
After their brilliant debut album Craft Sounds & Voices (Circus Company), was released in May 05, the pair headed out on the road for a tour which took them from Berlin to Zurich, Vienna and Brattilslava, from "Fabric" in London to Nice and Nantes, with a climax Barcelona’s Sonar festival, where fans queued up for the action. The also released Kitchen soon after, a 12” on Trapez that got playtime from Luciano, Akufen, Ricardo Villalobos, Thomas Brinkmann, Ark, Krikor, Cosmo Vitelli, John Tejada and Herbert
 
One year later they constructed their outstanding follow-up, How to Dance. The album is composed of delicious enticements designed a lure to the dancefloor, with stomping beats and fun, ambulant melodies. ARK contributes to three tracks on the album with his guitar, as well as being a some-time guest in live shows.
 
The Nôzians build their sounds with synthesizer gimmickery and tons of references from jazz to (a comedic) Tom Waits, Pierre Schaffer and John Cage, to Chicago house and Latin percussion. The objective doesn’t seem to be technical perfection, but the clear expression of fun via 1000 volts of energy lighting up the room.
 
> http://noze.blogspirit.com
> www.myspace.com/nozecircus
 
Appearances:
> CTM.07 > À BOUT DE SOUFFLE