Daniel Ouellette is an electronic solo artist from Massachusetts. He released 2003-2008 compilation Monsterland- The Revenge of Daniel last spring via his own label Meanie Jeannie, and the Kaiju Carnival EP (pictured at left) in October on the New Shiner label, co-produced by Scott Harrison (Burnt Fur).

The colorful and quirky cover of the crane reaching for the dinosaur toy prize seems oddly representative of the music inside, which is experimental, fun, and a little bit mysterious. From track to track, the genres blend and shift; from the electroclash-ified opener about non-conformity “She Went to a Moustache Party” through the grinding industrial end in “Euoplocephalus”, would you believe you would also meet drifting new age psychedelia along the way? “LUST” guides the listener along with synth strings and Ouellette’s deep-toned lyrics of desire, ending with a confession of “But I just don’t love you” and a sputtering of sound. Bringing back the dancability present on track #1, “Stigmata and Cookies” reflects on the thirst for material possessions, “I want a television with a giant screen / And a plate of cookies…”. “A Cup of Tea for the Dalai Lama” has a worldly, even spiritual charm, chugging away with Ouellette’s echoed vocals and crimes whisping in, and providing a counterpoint to the angular electronics found elsewhere on Kaiju Carnival EP.

It is not surprising that Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, and Laurie Anderson are amongst his influences, all artists affiliated with the experimental and avant-garde, though there are few such enterprising new artists in the 2000s, making it an interesting prospect to see what new territory Ouellette explores in his curious brand of music in the future.

Listen to Kaiju Carnival EP on Last.fm | Daniel Ouellette on MySpace Music | On CD Baby | Official Website