Kranky Records – Unsung Sundays https://unsungsundays.com What you should be listening to. Tue, 08 Mar 2016 20:57:44 +0000 en-CA hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.2.1 Tim Hecker: Virgins https://unsungsundays.com/album-reviews/tim-hecker-virgins/ Sun, 01 Nov 2015 13:02:57 +0000 http://unsungsundays.com/?post_type=album_reviews&p=159 Tim Hecker's 2013 record Virgins is going to be a tough one to follow up. Hecker understands what many electronic musicians don't: success in ambient music relies on your understanding of the emptiness of things, and there's a sparseness poking at every corner of Virgins that makes the music feel much larger, more orchestral, and more ornate than it really is.

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]]> Tim Hecker’s electronic work would make Hans Zimmer proud. His ambient approach follows an amazing story arc that flows directly from one song to the next, and Virgins might be his best work.

Every time I listen to this album, I’m caught off guard by the track changes. It feels as if the track is changing in the middle of a thought. Tim Hecker isn’t really dealing with thoughts here, though, so much as he is in themes. And the thought that carries us from one theme to another often shares both themes in common, and it’s really the thematic shift that feels sudden.

But as a songwriter, Hecker carries it sublimely. You newer feel as f he’s out of control, and he guides you on a story that it feels like only he can tell. There are emotional swells in this that you won’t feel outside of the Inception soundtrack (if that sort of music is your thing), and it’s all written so well that you feel as if you’re in the hands of a master.

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]]> Steve Hauschildt: Where All Is Fled https://unsungsundays.com/album-reviews/steve-hauschildt-where-all-is-fled/ Sun, 04 Oct 2015 12:02:42 +0000 http://unsungsundays.com/?post_type=album_reviews&p=481 Steve Hauschildt is, by a considerable margin, the most consistent and recognizable former member of Emeralds, and he doesn’t disappoint with his latest record. Where All Is Fled is dazzling atmospheric electronic that reveals both Hauschildt’s technical chops and songwriting abilities.

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]]> Steve Hauschildt’s record is a masterwork of electronic ambience, lulling the listener from beginning to end with the gentle sound of synths. The record is completely vocal-less and entirely enchanting. It at once reminds me of the Gone Girl soundtrack, but is so much more entertaining and enthralling, with much more to offer as a stand-alone piece of part (quite a compliment if you knew how I feel about Trent Reznor’s soundtrack work).

While I wouldn’t recommend Hauschildt’s record for those of us who are in need of a cup of coffee, I would recommend it as excellent background music for your cup of coffee. Or your Sunday reading. Or your Monday to Friday work schedule. Or even to fall asleep to. Hauschildt’s imaginative record deserves to be embedded in your skull as often as possible.

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]]> Lotus Plaza: The Floodlight Collective https://unsungsundays.com/album-reviews/lotus-plaza-floodlight-collective/ Sun, 06 Sep 2015 12:01:37 +0000 http://unsungsundays.com/?post_type=album_reviews&p=579 Lotus Plaza’s shoe-gaze is laid-back and open-hearted on The Floodlight Collective, and the organic production style makes the record feel more inviting than many of their contemporaries and peers.

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]]> Lotus Plaza’s lo-fi indie sound differs from their contemporaries because it’s not afraid to sound like lazy Sunday music, which makes it perfect for the Monday of a long weekend. This is chill music, without the supposed prerequisite commercial sheen, and it’s as inviting (if not more so) than most of the music their peers are making.

Getting rid of the sheen helps make the music feel more approachable, as if you’re listening to some of your friends have fun in a garage. Does that mean these guys pose a threat to the success of Beach House? Probably not. But they offer something the big shoe-gazers don’t: a little bit of intimacy.

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