Timo Maas built a reputation as a skilled DJ and producer in his native Germany, before enjoying a successful foray into “album-dance” on 2002’s well-received Loud. He tries to repeat the trick on Pictures, assembling a range of star vocalists for added accessibility.
It certainly kicks off in style: opener ‘Slip In Electro Kid’ is a slight-but-intriguing piece of low-key electronica – brooding strings and drum machine pitter-patter swell gradually, but never reach a climax.
Next comes the title track, a beautifully desolate, electroclash-flavoured number. Maas constructs such an elegantly dark backing track that even the vocal presence of Brian Molko, making some typically feeble attempts at appearing risqué, can’t spoil it. (You couldn’t shock us back in 1996, Brian, so you’re hardly going to succeed almost a decade later.)
Indeed, the quality and aptness of guest vocal performances on Pictures is fairly hit-and-miss. On the plus side, Neneh Cherry does a star turn on ‘High Drama’, a ghostly house thumper that sounds like Massive Attack abandoning their love of murky hip-hop and heading to the dancefloor.
On the downside, Kelis seems disinterested on ‘4 Ur Ears’, bringing relatively little of the sexually-charged charisma of her solo work. Rodney P’s rhymes on Spanish-guitar-licked hip-hop track ‘Release’ are also bereft of excitement.
Maas does manage to demonstrate that he’s a master at producing emotive, mid-tempo mood pieces, though. ‘Burn Out’ is a swirling, Eastern-flavoured treat; richly detailed and understatedly melodic. Closer ‘Haven’t We Met Before’ is mournful and magnificent, electronic flourishes complementing the orchestral sweep, before reaching a disappointingly abrupt ending.
A victim of his own eclecticism, for sure, but Timo Maas hits more often than he misses.