Yves Lenzin, 1976, from Baden, Switzerland. When learning to play the flute as an eight year old he preferred to perform his own compositions to the teacher instead of doing exercises. He soon quit all musical lessons and in 1990 discovered the pleasures of producing electronic music on his father's Atari. His early experiments developped into a variation of what was then hardcore techno. Adding a Yamaha keyboard to his machinery and adapting the alter ego of T-Shit saw Yves taking a trip towards more pop-oriented sounds, while the Deaf Fretsaws, a collaboration with mate Marco Arni, concentrated on exploring experimental grounds. In 1994 Yves also appeared as a singer and songwriter in the odd pop group Heidi Jam, but the the quartet was dissolved after only one gig.
Yves' solo productions came to a halt in early 1997 when the line-up of Sacha Gebert, Martina Lenzin, and her brother Yves formed the new wave/industrial band Subyouth, with Yves using a Roland S-50 sampler and occasionally playing guitar. What had been an ambitious and prolific project was dissolved after three years because of geographical scattering. For a short time Yves joined a more goth-tinged new wave group called Fenris, then he moved to Latvia for half a year, and after his return to Switzerland he joined forces with singer Linda Deubelbeiss in the trip hop/indie project S.C.O.T.U. (Secret Center Of The Universe).
As S.C.O.T.U. suffered from irregular rehearsing, Yves concentrated on producing music on his laptop, which has finally led to his new solo project. This time, he adapted his DJ name Piquet (a hint at his childhood enthusiasm for formula one racing and particularly the Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet). As ever, Yves relied on the minimum of equipment necessary, his production style being based on the manipulation of samples and synth lines. For the first time he felt that he is now able to produce electronic tracks that do not need any additional elements. In May 2004 the first track of the Piquet era was completed, and it was then that Yves decided to start work on a full album. The result of the process is called "Wilful Confusion" and has been finished in June 2006.
The music of “Wilful Confusion” has elements of breakbeat, acid, techno, electro, and dub, but not all of its sounds are as easy to categorize. The idea behind the album was to go back to a point in music history when creativity was high and styles were changing quickly, and to develop some of these phenomenons of time into unexplored directions. The result is like music from a future that could have happened but never did until now, that it already has a retro feel to it. The variation between the tunes is high, yet some recurring oddnesses prove that there can only have been one head behind the music.
Having finished the mixing of “Wilful Confusion”, Yves started using his voice on his newest tracks, producing melodic synth pop, spherical yet heavy on beats and bass. The broadened approach is a logical step given the different sounds Yves has been influenced by. Of these, some stand out: The 1991/92 UK hardcore breakbeat scene; EBM and new beat from Belgium as well as early Frankfurt techno; late eighties crossoverists as Meat Beat Manifesto, Pop Will Eat Itself and The Shamen; and indie bands from the shoegaze and ‘Madchester’ rave scenes.
Selected statements:
"Man kann dazu kaum richtig sitzen beim seriösen CD-Besprechen." Albert Kuhn, Die Weltwoche
"Schön, irritierend reichhaltig und eloquent im Erzählen von den verschiedensten Genres." Pascal Blum, kommerz.ch
"...le tout agrémenté de touches pop présentes tout au long de l'album, garantissant une cohérence de style et de son à l'artiste." Laurent, hexadance.ch
"Der Newcomer Piquet blastet sie alle aus dem Weg." 'break bits', cede.ch
"I have always loved electronic in most of its forms but this is exceptional." 'xonix', audiostreet.net
"This album is an eclectic trip and will satisfy your hunger if you’ve loved electronic music right from the beginning." k. felgerman, discogs.com
