Tape - Luminarium

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5...according to our Brian on Wed 03 Jun, 2009.

Ant reviewed Luminarium by Tape (the digital equivalent anyway) last year, it's taken Thrill Jockey that long to licence the Swedish trio's wonderful fourth album for release on deluxe vinyl with a download code. Awww! And they've done this hybrid classic a huge service committing its languid, sparkly outsider grooves to wax. By blending ambient textures, graceful neo-classical touches, gentle acoustic guitar & swathes of chirruping, whirring vintage electronic wonderment they've hit on a homely, tender sound that's as soothing as it is satisfyingly experimental. I like the slightly woozy character and use of old analogue keyboards, the splicing of emotive melodies with a mischievous random element. There's that whole hauntological element intact here as Ant & I have just been discussing, half forgotten sounds & eerie, dreamy effects that practitioners like Advisory Circle, Belbury Poly & Bibio successfully embelish their music with. Thoroughly beautiful, comfortingly melancholic & incredibly engaging, this baby's going home wit' moi. Well dope.

"Dreaming the same dreams, not knowing of each other. Invoking old times at new places, side by side, not knowing of each other. Longing for yearning; light of dawn and midday sun. A world which lets itself be sensed, not known; the first light of your rosy-fingered youth; birches and concrete, touch and go.

The new album by Swedish group Tape is a luminarium of sound where past and present merge at the speed of light."

Tape is the trio of Andreas Berthling, Johan Berthling and Tomas Hallonsten from Stockholm, Sweden. This is their fourth album and it was recorded in their Summa studio in Stockholm.

Bio:

Swedish trio Tape was set up in 2000 by brothers Andreas and Johan Berthling with Tomas Hallonsten. Taking cues both from pop, experimentalism, and minimalism their sound has become recognized internationally and is clearly something of its own. Their first album Opera was released on the Häpna imprint (which Johan is a co-owner of) in 2002. Working intuitive, all by themselves, they created mini symphonies out of electronic sounds paired with a stunning melodic lyricism. With an array of electronic and acoustic instruments at hand they recorded at a small stone barn on the island of Öland, east of Sweden. 2003 saw the release of Milieu, recorded at the very same barn. These recordings had a more arranged feeling and a clear pop sensibility in some parts. In 2005 they went to Cologne to have Marcus Schmickler produce and record their third album Rideau. This was done in his Piethopraxis studio in Cologne and his involvement left traces; an almost architectonical approach was taken and some of the intimacy that characterized the first two albums were replaced by a harder edge.

In 2006 they collaborated with Japanese duo Tenniscoats on their album Tan–Tan Therapy (Häpna 2007). The same year they recorded in Tokyo with Japanese quartet Minamo, which resulted in the record Birds of a feather (HEADZ 2007).

In the years, their touring has taken them to places like Japan, Taiwan, USA and most parts of Europe.

Tracks: 1. Beams, 2. Moth Wings, 3. Fingers, 4. Reperto, 5. Mystery Mutiny, 6. Dripstone, 7. Altamira, 8. Parade, 9. Illuminations, 10. Beams Out

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