TAPANI RINNE – FOGHORNIA 
In 2019 I was pleasantly surprised by Tapani Rinne‘s album Radioton. And then again, more recently, by Dark Days with Aleksi Myllykoski. So my expectations were high with this new album promising titled Foghornia. Those expectations were more than met: from the very first notes on Foghorn, the sound of the bass clarinet embedded in electronic soundscapes is, once again, very persuasive.
Compared to earlier work, the overall sound may be deeper and more melancholic – which probably originated from the current state of the world. Rinne reflects on his childhood hometown Pori, dedicating his music to the two founders of the Pori Jazz Festival who both influenced his work. The track has a firm industrial effect: Pori is also known for its industrial nature.
It shows his ability to merge ‘private’ experiences into ‘public’ music: “Music is not a separate island on its own but a part of everyday life.”
Foghornia is the second Tapani Rinne release on the Signature Dark label, dedicated to ‘dark, melancholic, minimalistic and cinematic music’. All of those aspects are represented on this single album.
PEPO GALÁN – SOLEDAD
When his aunt Soledad became critically ill, Pepo Galán started to create music for her, inspired by his memories of the many summers he stayed at her house in the beaches of El Palo in Málaga, in the company of his cousins and brothers.
“I remember quite often the stillness of the sea. […] The calm and the buzzing of the boats transferred me to a dimension of peace and freedom.“
The six tracks of this short album are deliberately lo-fi recorded, retaining the atmosphere of memories. The hiss of the tape sounds like the sea “when the waves didn’t even break on the shore”. A week after recording, his aunt Soledad passed away.
Galán was informed of her death while he was listening to the title song of this album – “Coincidence or a strong connection?”
For this music release on Andrew J. Klimek’s StereoScenic label all six tracks are remixed by different artists: Hilyard, Anthéne, Awakened Souls, Black Brunswicker, Zarr. and Furnish. Though remaining close to the original intention of the music, most remixes have a somewhat ‘cleaner’ sound, sometimes (almost) eliminating the lo-fi tape hiss, opening different perspectives on the same basic material.