- Deep, foggy ambient sketches for your next acid trip.
- The first time I listened to Swirlings, my mind drifted to the American band Emeralds and the once-strong indie synth scene surrounding them (think early Oneohtrix Point Never and Pocahaunted). Something about the sparkling, sculpted arpeggios reminded me of that scene's late '00s heyday, only more polished and focused. The déjà vu isn't that surprising, because Portland's Daryl Groetsch has been doing his thing as long as those guys. Hausu Mountain, the label releasing his Swirlings album as Pulse Emitter, is that scene's spiritual successor. From the psychedelic artwork to its DIY cassettes, the outlet is central to the sprawling community of American freaks using tables of hardware to make weird electronic music.
Swirlings, Hausu Mountain's first full release from Groetsch, is a delightful record suffused with emotion and warmth. Much of the LP will sound familiar to synth heads, connecting the old days of Emeralds and No Fun Productions with the modern new age revival, with all the associated psychedelia and meditation. Groetsch's style is unabashedly beautiful, but never turns to kitsch. "Fairy Tree," for example, is a glorious ecosystem of textures that emerges from a fertile bed of chords.
Groetsch makes heavy use of microtones, which keeps the LP's emotive qualities mysterious, the notes resolving in ways you might not expect. On the sparse closer, "Empty Hold," the synths waver, like they can't hold down a single note. On "Space Frost," sustained notes entwine in slow motion. It feels uneasy, in spite of its gorgeous melodies. That restraint means Swirlings is more than just another trendy synth record. Even at its most abstract, Groetsch keeps the songs grounded. The record breezes by in an easy 40 minutes, enough to instil a deeply chilled aura without boredom setting in. From the way the melodies climb through the hanging atmosphere of "Ripples" to the Sasha-like glitter of "Cloud Refuge," Swirlings is full of lovely, considered music that sticks in your mind long after the synth fog dissipates.
Tracklist01. Electron Central
02. Fairy Tree
03. Space Frost
04. Ripples
05. Cloud Refuge
06. Empty Hold