Danish producer Kölsch returns to his own IPSO label for the release of his fifth studio album, Isopolis. The album is “an audio diary of a city in lockdown”, according to Kölsch. The 8-long tracklist comes in a little over 30 minutes in length, so it’s certainly not the longest record you’ll come across, thankfully though, good albums are measured by their quality, not their quantity. The first half of the album is almost OST-like, where melancholic string pads and softened piano keys take focus – tracks
1 and 4 also include contribution from Mike Sheridan. The latter four tracks are split between experimental recordings and rhythm-attentive club sounds. Both Closer and Atreyu bring an energy that’s absent on the rest of the album, and one we would have loved to have heard on more than just 2 tracks. The final 2 inclusions, Awake and Isopolis, bring a combination of dense reverbs, filter-delays and pitch-shifting over the top of some pretty-experimental sounds.
Where to start:
Closer: Thick synth basslines and chunky drum hits
Atreyu: Percussive low end gives foundation to panned melodies
Eterna: Chilling piano keys float across wide open soundscapes
Previous from Kölsch:
Now Here No Where LP (2020, Kompakt)
1989 LP (2017, Kompakt)
If you like this then check out:
Monkey Safari – HI LP (2019, Hommage)
Jan Blomqvist – Disconnected LP (2018, Armada Music)
Kölsch’s Isopolis LP is out now on IPSO.