Reviews 364: X.Y.R.
X.Y.R. is among my absolute favorite purveyors of transportive balearica, soothing synth ambient, and mysterious fourth world, and ahead of writing about his epic, mystical, and deeply zoned out Pilgrimage LP on Not Not Fun, I’d like to take some time to write about the artist’s Tourist, which saw a cassette repress by Ingrown Records a few months ago, after originally being released by the label on vinyl back in 2017. X.Y.R.–real name Vladimir Karpov–has explored a range of fantastical and otherworldly textures across his discography, whether through his increasingly psychedelic collaborations with Not Not Fun, or through releases such Robinson Crusoe (Lost Soundtrack), El Dorado, and Artika, all of which explore sonic narratives both mythical and imagined. But amongst all the shades and styles he has worked with, I am perhaps most fascinated by his journeys into tropical dreamworlds and horizontal paradises, such as those found on the Big Calm cassette. And in many ways, Tourist was a spiritual successor to that album, as both releases perfectly soundtrack lazy days spent at seaside, with music that is seemingly meant to evoke the feeling of swaying in a hammock strung between two palm trees, as warm salt-air, rhythmic waves, and perfumes from exotic flowers lull the mind into a meditative state of bliss. As always, X.Y.R. colors over his beloved Formanta-Mini and Alisa1387 analog synthesizers with pedal fx, an RC-20 loop station, and field recordings, while also giving space to the guitar of Dmitriy Borodin on album opener “Celler Florida Fiesta.” And just as on the vinyl release, Alexandr Dimov’s evocative artwork graces the cover, with his visage of a fisherman gazing at some glorious sunset perfectly encapsulating the album’s paradisiacal evocations of a relaxing island escape.
X.Y.R. - Tourist (Ingrown Records, 2017 / 2020) In opener “Celler Florida Fiesta”, percolating synthesizers shimmer like Carribean crystals, only as if seen through a mirage of seafoam. Vocalized bass textures fade in and mechanical loops click, pulse, and breath while bird whistles flutter at the edge of the mix. Reverb-soaked field recordings move around the periphery as the synths occasionally lock into playful tropicalisms that pull my mind the work of Hosono…these bleary and blurry themes of child-like wonderment and equatorial ecstasy. Everything is held together by hushed rhythms of reverberating click and clack, while fourth world hooks whoosh back and forth between pan-pipes and whistles. And by the end, the abstracted tropical loops and drunken themes of seaside mirth begin to suggest an android’s approximation of an island lullaby. The swirling warmth of “Bon Voyage” follows, with organic bass thumps and hissing cymbals flowing through dub delay chains. New age synthetics smear and smoldering subsonic waves work through melodies of equatorial splendor, with looping phrases bathing the mind in a summer sunshine glow. Reggae-hued textures spread outwards amongst echoing chord bursts, hazy heatwave pads diffuse in from distant horizons, and as the basslines recede, white noise whispers and sighing seed shakers add polyrhythmic movement. Soviet-era synths cycle through mermaid melodies that dance across the stereo field, and bass notes swim dreamily in one ear, only to have starscape leads resume their phrase on the other side of the spectrum.
Pads hover amidst bubbling liquids at the outset of “Bathyscape Journey,” and dreamspace synth circulations merge with white noise shaker patterns. ASMR clicks and electroacoustic whispers flutter as those hovering pads reach towards an impossibly beautiful horizon, and faded whistles emerge to lead a relaxing island sway. The mix overflows with texture and movement as underwater gemstones generate sparkles that trail off to the far reaches of the stereo field, and lush layers of reverb create an otherworldly effervescence…as if the entire mix is bathed in softened layers of pearlescent fizz. Deep chords evoke a choir of masculine sea sprites, and something in the melodies recalls the folk music of the southeastern Pacific. Tapped cymbals evoke drumsticks splashing into metalloid pools of static and further folksy whistles melt over the mix, which increasingly evokes a psychedelic paradise of tropical wonderment, wherein colorful creatures of the seafloor play strange woodwinds of shell and coral while analog cloudforms swirl all around. Next comes “Mountain Drift” and the sounds of breath, children, and bubbling synth pulsations that increasingly grow in magnitude. Insectoid rattles are heard far away and blurring layers of squarewave synthesizer intermingle, as dazzling phrases and interlocking echo patterns flow in from all directions. Mystical temple melodies evoke an ancient forest shrouded in fog, but the sounds of humanity are never far from reach, as snippets of childlike chatter coalesce with birdsong and industrial factory detritus. I’m reminded at times of the distinctive new age and environmental ambient of Inoyama Land, as well as of minimalism, due to the increasing presence of bouncing curlicues. kinetic echo cycles, and psychoactive sound loops.
In “Captain’s Pipe,” avian conversations surround soft focus synth melodies that move through longform ascents and descents. Harmonious wavefronts of organ-esque tonality bath the body in ecclesiastical light and sequencers constructed from ocean crystals dazzle the mind, with time signatures not quite aligning, and thus creating a vibe of daydream intoxication. Keys buzz in the left ear and voices speak in the distance, and though I know not the title’s origin, I like to imagine it as the name of some café deep in the jungle…a sort of harmonious glow of life and culture in the heart of a rainforest, with people basking in tropical melodics and conversing about nothing at all while birds paradise flit from tree to tree. Flowing seamlessly into “Euphoria,” heavenly tones quiver like Spacemen 3, only as if heard underwater and surrounded by bubble clouds that erupt from seafloor vents. Space age whistles and meditative pads whisper together until suddenly, the track develops into a fully formed island groove, one that sees equatorial basslines thumping, shakers sketching out rhythms of seaside mesmerism, and synthesizers harmonizing together, with tones ghostly, otherworldly, and again recalling the worlds of City Pop (think Wonder City Orchestra and Jun Fukamachi’s ambient work). Wavering leads dance around the spectrum while being tracked by percussive sparkles and elsewhere, bubbling currents flow upwards before dispersing into shards of light. Eventually, those groovy basslines recede as seasick synth work diffuses into the mix, but it’s a false ending into whirlpool of angelic shimmers and metallic wisps, for soon enough, the thumping bass jam returns, bringing with it atmospheres of a thrilling seaside sashay.
Reverberating voices sit above a drunken bass gallop in “Cocktail Party,” as if meant to suggest a futuristic saloon town by the sea. Thudding percussions underly the bass motions while tropical hazes flutter in and out of focus…all while vibrato atmospheres cycle through strange patterns. Percussive pads mimic steel drums, smears of feedback arc in the distance, and the beats cut momentarily before dropping back in, with the body falling ever further into the loping sway. There’s a touch of Ethiopian music intermingling with spaghetti western soundtrack work, and at times the vibe presages the more blissful and balearic moments from SiP’s Leos Naturals. And later, further melodic layers descend to create harmonizing polyrhythms as the titular cocktail party precedes somewhere deep in the mix. The glimmering synthesizer wavefronts of “Coconut Haze” emerge from crowd chatter, while slow motion loops whirl around bass pulses that are felt more than heard. Strings synths diffuse into clouds of gas and heatwave leads flutter upwards while lullaby arpeggiations sit deep in the background ether…their subdued rhythms eventually enhanced by ceremonial drums and tambourine jangles. Electronics evoke the feeling of being surrounded by a summer storm, with gentle layers of resonance joining together and generating soft spiritual howls. The body sways back and forth on the paradise rhythms, and hissing textures of pink noise and serene static surround the spirit, again evoking a cleansing bath of rainfall. Closer “Vanishing Point” begins with garbled electronics and reversing streaks of angelic radiance–the vibe gentle at first–but growing increasingly strange was the track progresses. Tapped cymbals and tambourines flow in as arps made of glowing glass fire across the spectrum, generating dazzling light patterns that seem to emanate from some unseen center. Berlin school textures are filtered into vaporwave crystals before ascending on currents of rainbow energy, and the melodies are enhanced with a sense of wistful nostalgia akin to 50s pop…like a paradise remembered, or perhaps only dreamed.
(images from my personal copy)