19.) Dive - Tycho (Top 20 Albums of 2011)

Dive

Tycho

Ghostly International.

Original SCQ Review.

Seeing as how I wrote about Dive just a week or so ago, I was tempted – sitting next to the glow of a Christmas tree and eating Rice Krispie squares – to simply rehash my praise for Tycho’s latest. But once ‘A Walk’’s weathered tones bubble up, I’m reminded that the last thing Dive needs is hyperbole. What mesmerized me so much about this record in the first place was how Hansen’s music seems to stand strong without any auteur-like shackles. These songs evoke their own thin-aired landscapes, their own unique daydreams; for me to carry on with comparisons to other electronic artists who’ve traveled this winning path already would be missing the point.

For those of you who feel better assured dipping into new music with some context however, I’ll say this: Scott Hansen’s 2004 debut Sunrise Projector was reissued three times before this year’s follow-up was completed, and that time was well-spent. Tycho’s hazy melodies and hey-day worthy break-beats carry an aura that drenches even the simplest of activities – like shoving one’s face with holiday cheer – in weightless beauty. An album better experienced than studied over.