mnchrme
The pinnacle of experimental/tape sound. Analog warmth, wonderful textures set into the context of time and space. Lovely release.
Favorite track: Mercury River.
This recording is born as a collaboration of two artists, both living in different countries during the part of the process: one living in Tampere, Finland, the other moving to Brno, Czechia. A setting that created a space for the album to mature naturally as the mixing sessions couldn’t happen more often than once a year. Now it‘s finally the time to present the Lunar Horns’ six-tracker called Bola. Inspired by sessions with analog synthesizers and acoustic instruments this new Nona release feels refreshingly playful, diverse and organic, yet dark and cinematically intense. It is a welcoming contribution to this winter‘s playlists with its sombre pads and melodies as well as modular synth sound design grandeur.
The opening track Night Tigers transports you right into an odd jazzy atmosphere fitting the dark crooked vibe of Dale Cooper‘s dreams, while Chroma Eater utilizes growling bass and tribal polyrhythms to create a sense of hunted prey. The A-side finishes with a deconstructed composition Celestor. Mercury River is a ticking bomb soundtrack followed by the short Antennae. The last and longest track Nyctophiles is an epic and carefully crafted ambient piece, completing the album in a dark and brooding way as it deserves.
The music created by the Finnish duo Lunar Horns explores nocturnal landscapes, strange attraction and the beauty of temporality. While Lunar Horns are working primarily with modular synthesizers and other analog and digital synths, their sound is cultivated with organic percussions, piano, violin and subtle field recordings that are processed inside the modular synthesizer ecosystem. Their experiments on the borderline of human expression and machine unpredictability create transient zones of which familiarity feels strange and strangeness familiar.
The collected works presented on Bola have been created in Tampere, Finland and Brno, Czechia during the time span from January 2016 to October 2018.
---
credits
released December 4, 2020
Simo Hakalisto
Modular synthesizers, analog and digital synthesizers,
electric violin, field recordings, piano, tape manipulations.
Timo Juntunen
Modular synthesizers, analog and digital synthesizers,
tabla, udu, percussions, field recordings, tape manipulations.
Created and recorded in Tampere, Finland
and Brno, Czech Republic between 2016-2018.
Mixed by Timo Juntunen
Mastered by Ondřej Ježek at Jámor Studio
Spacey, electronic sounds are brilliantly counterpointed by the recordings of nature, and the heaviness is balanced by subtle guitar chords. Niesner avoids pathos and opts for rather subtle nuances, imaginative arrangements, and a dramatically constructed lyrical story.
More: https://thequietus.com/articles/32149-czech-music-guide-tomas-niesner-irena-and-vijtech-havlovi-gurun-gurun Jakub Knera