A Vast And Experimental Album from TYGRA
An immense new release from TYGRA delivers a sort of ambient, spacious, semi-spiritual, and very eventful blend of atmospheres by taking elements of electronic, chill, hip-hop, synth-pop, and more, rolling them all into one fat record, and dropping lots of surprises around its corners.
Now, this album definitely invites some friends and collaborators along the way that really add different layers to the songs and most certainly can build on those atmospheres in their own manner.
This is an album that is rooted in electronic music but branches out into all these different places, and does it with a seamless approach and expansive underbellies, so that you end up just getting swallowed up by everything.
There are definitely lots of dream pop elements flowing through its veins; it is character-driven at times and has brilliant sonic presence throughout the entire thing.
The first track, which is the title track of the record, "Magic Summer", sort of opens the door before the rest of the album and showcases how the artist and producers are able to utilize synth and ketones to create robust but dreamy spaces.
This is followed by "Echoes", which introduces a little bit more of the hip-hop element. This track features R&B flows and combines forces with both Dag Alexander and Ecovillage.
One of the things I love about this track, and something that happens often throughout the record, is that there are vocals that flow through the songs and are not really put on the upfront. They're more like instruments themselves, even though they have lyrics. They float through the ether of the songs and give them depth and layers.
A lot of this record showcases a knack for sound sculpting. Being able to create new sounds built from standard ones. I find this astounding. Just the way TYGRA can mold and shape sounds to build these different worlds and vast, cinematic, and electronic aesthetics is quite brilliant and at times, almost breathtaking.
As I mentioned a little earlier, this record is genre-bending. There is no one style or genre to call this record.
It is beautifully engulfing, the songs can be edgy but elegant at the same time, and all of them provide you with these gigantic worlds and soundscapes to sort of swim through.
"Within you" delivers classic electronic sounds blending elements of house and dance into the mix, bringing Dag back for more and taking on such boisterous sounds to soak in.
All of these tracks are really big-feeling. I think it has a lot to do with the Sonic drive behind them and how everything is put together in a particular fashion.
A lot of thought went into this record, but you can also tell there's a sort of free flow to it as well.
A lot of the songs have a fluency to them that is almost undefinable, but you can feel it when you listen.
The Psychedelic experimental side shows face on certain tracks like "Golden Sunflower", which certainly provides vintage keys, classic approaches, and some samples that are peppered in, making the whole thing a little bit thick with texture.
I love being able to hear those vintage tones and psychedelic approaches come through on a track that has a hip-hop sort of underbelly to it.
As I said, this is a record that's full of surprises, and there's no way to really soak all of that in without listening to it all the way through, from start to finish.
Listening to this record in one shot gives you a full experience. It serves almost like an escape and can pull you away from whatever you're doing and whatever you are for a good chunk of time.
If you listen to the full album, when it's over, you'll have to sort of snap yourself back to reality again.
I consider this almost like a gift. A musical gift that you don't always get, so when it comes across, it's quite refreshing.
Not only is it engulfing, but it's also full of color, flavor, and these bright sounds and tones that come flying at you at times or drifting past you, others.
Either way, you definitely get a lot to chew on, and it's quite an adventure.
I absolutely suggest listening to this full record with headphones on because it's one of the best ways to soak in all of these tones, textures, and layers that you're able to take in.
Listening with headphones really puts you in the moment with the songs and lets your mind sort of travel to different places with the music.
This was all brilliantly woven and again features several other collaborators that add even more depth to this record.
Most importantly, the record has personality, character, soul, and heart.
It's meant to make you think, take you to these places, and free your mind for a little while.
I think we all need that these days, so this is one of the best ways to do it.
The record is released via Constellation Tatsu, which features many adventurous, outside-the-box artists and releases.
Definitely check this record out first, and then jump over to the constellation Tatsu site to dig into more. Believe me, there's plenty to dig into there, and they also have other releases available on cassette and CD.
