Review Summary: A post-rock/indie folk/ambient sonic rollercoaster.
A lovely surprise this year was stumbling upon Hypercollider’s latest album,
We shall never meet again-how wonderful! Goodbye., a one-man project born in Florence, Italy. Offering a smooth blend of mostly instrumental post-rock, indie folk and ambient, alongside some glitch and math rock aesthetics, we are gently immersed in a relaxing yet often bittersweet sound. “We shall never meet” opens with a hand-clapped rhythm, over which a beautiful piano melody soon unfolds. Calogant’s saxophone solo takes over the second half, enhancing that “end of summer” type atmosphere the tune evokes. “—“ follows with its intimate, acoustic guitar melodies and a reverbed kick underneath. A discreet, sustained sonic layer intensifies the mood, before breaking into a mesmerizing chord picking coda. Meanwhile, “how wonderful” boasts a cool syncopated drum pattern, enhanced by dual guitar leads and lush interludes, which echo a mix of Cloudkicker and Buckethead’s mellow works. Moreover, “Goodbye” adds a dose of
The King of Limbs era Radiohead style drum programming to the aforementioned atmosphere and it fits perfectly. Between them, lies the late night vibe drone “!”, accompanied by minimal piano leads, whereas “.” ends the record with a light, acoustic ditty, complete with soft vocals. The latter appear out of nowhere, however, they have a certain charm in the overall context. Despite its rather short, 34-minute time span, this LP feels like a complete listen, lovely and soothingly displaying bits of the genres approached.
