This Week In The Universe: Tellurian

The brainchild of the brothers Golden - Beau and Casey - This Week In The Universe is a synthwave duo pulling from some familiar 80s sources, while also adding a few twists of their own. Sprinkling a number of intriguing spoken samples over the top of their electro-brew, the results can be surprisingly captivating and with a bright, but not dazzling sound, there’s more than enough to draw you into this world and hold you there.

The short introductory “Beryllium Sphere� sets the tone, the sharp keyboard chords undoubtedly creating a Jarre-like tone, but the modernity and precise nature also brings Etienne Forget to mind. It’s a busy but not overwhelming style and one followed throughout this collection. The memorable swoosh of “Frostilicus� offers a deeper, darker groove that’s still laden with glistening pay offs, while “Underground Rail� proves to be a forceful push of harsh notes and a churning beat.

Impressively for a release in this style, the variety within this album is well laid out and certainly offers more than enough entry points to keep you zoned in, with the controlled aggression of “Ultra Poseable� offset by an 80s surge and a super accessible mid-section. Melody makes its subtle presence felt throughout and in a way that means that music that can at times feel remote and austere actually sticks with you a while after its stopped spinning. “Pressure Intensify� seems to have an inner lyric in the instrumental themes while the scrape and thump of “Used Goblins� still possesses an (albeit off kilter) synth line for you to keep a hold of.

As ever with these types of albums, it takes a while for the message and intention here to truly get under your skin, and while, as can often be the case in this setting, there are some clear influences on display, This Week In The Universe also know how to blend their own ideas and styles into the mix. If this is a musical area in which you often reside, then the Tellurian album should be on your radar.

Track Listing
1. Beryllium Sphere
2. Frostilicus
3. Metal Man
4. Challenger
5. Underground Rail
6. Race
7. Ultra Poseable
8. Pressure Intensify
9. Brain Slug
10. Used Goblins
11. Bigger Than Gingham

Added: March 10th 2019
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: This Week In The Universe @ CD Baby
Hits: 793
Language: english

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