Discreet offshoot Frihetens Förlag, the label operated by Blod's Gustaf Dicksson, takes a curious left turn into phantasmagorical, symphonic soundtrack-pop on this latest collection from fellow Gothenburg denizen Oscar Rydelius aka Ratvader. Rydelius has a little history as a video game soundtrack composer, the kind of professional background seemingly at odds with the autodidactic remit at the heart of near-all of the music in the Discreet (and related) orbit. And yet, beneath the ornate arrangements of strings and bells and whistles and drums, some part Jon Brion, some part The Books and the rest situated someway within the uncanny valley of vaporwave, there's the implied expression of the kind of traditional song and wholesome sentiment existent in a lot of Dicksson's work around folk and religious musics. On reflection, I wonder if Blod's recent Förlorarnas Natt CD, itself a soundtrack for a film not yet made, was inspired by the relationship with Rydelius? It seems feasible, though Kite is a distinctly more hi-fi sounding production, in that sense more in line perhaps with the sonically rich compositions of Sternpost than anything Discreet-connected. It's unexpected but equally, why should we be so surprise? These guys have been doing whatever they want for years now, bent by whim and fancy rather than any kind of preconceived notion. You might not find what you were expecting here, but you might well find what you didn't know you needed.
FFO: Jon Brion, Vaporwave, Blod, The Books, Penguin Cafe Orchestra
