NEW ALBUMS
JENS BUCHERT- Elevation
Release 2016-01-02
dimension music production
Genre: Electronica, Ambient, Downbeat, Chillout
THIS TIME THE JENS BUCHERT SOUND SPACESHIP MAKES A STOPOVER IN AN EPIC AMBIENT SCENERY.
Mystic downbeat meets Ambient. Electronica meets Chill House - but everything again typical with this JB sound. Unexpectedly, different, mellow, organic and above all - as the title suggests - uplifting and enlightening!
Electronic Music for dipping and compassion. Full of warmth and analog spirit. Atmospheric but still crisp and fresh. Adult but still playful and full of unexpected moments. In the end, closes the magic circle around the "Sound Wizard" and acclaimed musician. Jens Buchert has again delivered a piece of jewellery,which should be in every electronic music box. Entertaining and to the point - you must re-enter, dream away and float away! *****
Bob Moses-Days gone by
Label:domino
What happens when deep house meets live instruments and sultry singing? The genre is smack in the middle of a renaissance period, and the innovation of the producers involved takes the genre to new heights day by day. One welcome addition to deep house has been live elements, notably instruments and vocals. New York-based duo Bob Moses epitomize this trend perhaps better than anyone; member Jimmy Vallance creates blissful, deep instrumentals, while counterpart Tow Howie plays guitar and sings with a downcast yet mesmerizing voice. The duo just released their debut album Days Gone By, and with it Bob Moses makes a strong case for being one of the hottest rising acts in electronic music today. While previous singles emphasized the techno production over the live aspects, this debut LP straddles the line between the two halves just enough to give their music a pop sheen. Make no mistake, moody production plays a critical role in the album, but it works more cohesively with Howie’s singing than it ever has in the past. A somber tone dominates Days Gone By, punctuated by emotive guitar licks and lone piano keys. The opening track “Like It Or Not”, sets the mood excellently: cascading drums, dance-ready claps, and Howie delivering lyrics like, “Like it or not you know it’s true.” This eclectic mixture carries throughout the album, but Bob Moses ensure to diversify each track so that the overall atmosphere of the album never wears its welcome. However, the tracks never experiment too much, and the potential for genre-defying tracks definitely exists for this duo. The subject matter of the tracks is the one key element that remains similar throughout, with Howie singing about topics like lost love, lust, and infidelity. In “Tearing Me Up”, an album highlight, Howie paints a picture of a man being seduced by a women already in a relationship. Vallance juxtaposes the dark subject matter with a groovy bassline and snaps, and Howie plays along with vocal patterns that sound fit for a dance club. This divide could be explored more in future releases, as the other tracks never reach quite the groovy ceiling “Tearing Me Up” hits. Other tracks scale the energy down to give both members time to refine their sound. On titular track “Days Gone By”, a lone synth complements Howie’s grave lyrics, focused on times (and perhaps love) passed. “Before I Fall” also fits the grey mold, complete with a gripping guitar lick and Howie urging that he’s “gonna need someone strong to catch [him] before [he] falls.” Not the sort of lyrics one would picture with the clubs of Ibiza and New York City, but the instrumentals do a great job of bouncing the energy up.
The songs work best when the layers build up to create an emotional climax, as demonstrated by “Too Much Is Never Enough.” The track begins quietly, with drums and guitar chords heard far in the distance. Howie’s voice creates a light for the listener to use as a navigator, and the growing instrumentals bring bright light to a track that began in darkness. Bob Moses excel in creating mood, and it’s no wonder their music appealed to the deep house lovers since they first started releasing singles.
With Days Gone By, Bob Moses touches on poppy melodies just enough to find a larger audience without alienating their established fanbase. It’s a very strong debut, but we urge the duo to pursue some diversity when it comes to their next work. Given the live presence on the album, the group’s live show should organically represent the new songs and mix well with the previous tracks of their career.
BLOND:ISH-WELCOME TO PRESENT
LABEL : KOMPAKT
RELEASE DATE: 23 OCTOBER 2015
BLOND:ISH's surprising album debut sees the duo departing from the club comfort zone and embarking on a universal journey.
• A masterfully crafted and fully intoxicating soundscape presenting a vibrant, colourful mix of electronic moods, field recordings, traditional instruments and polyglot vocals.
After having established their rule over the 12" format and turning your run-of-the-mill dance EP into a miniature opera in its own right, BLOND:ISH were bound to come up with a debut full-length at some point - but even so, WELCOME TO THE PRESENT drops as a major surprise: flexing the psychedelic and spiritual influences that already informed their LOVERS IN LIMBO EP (KOMPAKT 253), INWARD VISIONS (KOMPAKT 268) and WUNDERKAMMER (KOMPAKT 308), this new material presents itself not so much as the collection of DJ-ready peak-time bangers that some would've expected, but as what we admiringly would call a total trip. It sees the duo embark on a universal journey, departing from the club comfort zone and exploring the deeper shades of world electronica from within. Here, each track is part of a bigger story, accomplishing its role in a vibrant, colourful mix of electronic moods, field recordings, traditional instruments and polyglot vocals - a masterfully crafted and fully intoxicating soundscape unlike any other album debut out there.
Things start off in the most unassuming manner, when opener SHY GRASS lives up to its name and gently introduces a few fleeting chords to what sounds like the recording of casual child banter. The first real bass drum takes its sweet time to hit - and when it does, it does so like the wind caressing your cheek. It's a soothing, unadulterated chill-out vibe greeting the listener, followed by new age gem LOS PENSIAMENTOS and an aerial, highly immersive revamp of BLOND:ISH's classic club cut LUCY'S AFFAIR. It's only half-way through lead single ENDLESS GAMES - itself morphed into a special album-only version - that we indeed meet the first actual club beat. That's not an accident, but a very deliberate aesthetic choice - the result of what seems like the duo's very own alchemic procedure turning water into wine, and a multitude of disparate folkloric snippets into a blueprint for a unique new kind of ambient-infused dance floor.
The trip to the paradise abyss continues with sneaky rhodes showcase NADA BRAHMA, mysterious electronic fairy tale MOONVALLEY and a slightly adjusted new version of vintage hit VELVET WAVE. Suddenly, you realize that the heat's been rising all along, thanks to the labyrinthine percussion, imploring vocals and uncanny instrumentation of MYEIN CARAVAN or the shadowy funk of JUPITER & JAGUAR, all culminating in the powerful, incessant groove of INNER JUNGLE, as much a mission statement as it is a formidable track to dance to. Just as mesmerizing as the peacock gracing the album's cover artwork, these seething cuts reflect "every road that we have taken to come to this point in time", as the duo explains - spanning spiritual and physical travels to South America, Mexico and India. Recording the album in a makeshift studio in Tulum, Mexico, where they have also found a new home, BLOND:ISH make expert use of the greater running time of the format to build pace and play with release, transgressing the conventions of electronic club music in favor of a mystical tour de force. An what better way to conclude this journey than with a track called IT STARTS NOW?
