Simian Mobile Disco’s Jas Shaw is releasing a new album Sollbruchstelle I – III that will be preceded by three EPs of album tracks. The first EP, Sollbruchstelle I: Become The Scenic Route, is out today with seven album tracks. It is designed to be a trilogy of EPs according to Shaw so fans can digest in short pieces.
The album title means “breaking point” in German, which was a concept that Shaw embraced with this record. He explored this as “either where something likely to break (a person, or society as a whole for instance), or where something is intended to break (like the indentations on a bar of chocolate). It’s got a kind of built in mixture of sadness and hope, which I found an appealing concept.”
Like many other musicians, this was recorded in isolation, but true isolation because of Shaw’s operation for his cell disorder AL amyloidosis and COVID risk. No plague raves for him. “All records are a document of their time, but in this case, it was quite literal,” he notes.
He honed his space acoustically to work with his music as he created without any instruments, but with electronic noises.
“This album both is and isn’t acoustic. There are no actual instruments being played, but electronic noises were recorded as if live instruments, and a piano was used as an ‘unplugged’ amplifier/effects unit.’ I made a system where I could play the synth sounds and send them to Exciters, which are small flat speakers without a cone that you fix onto a surface, which effectively then becomes part of the speaker itself,” Shaw explains in a statement.
“I attached the Exciter to the soundboard of my piano, which gave natural amplification and added the instrument’s acoustics – all of which was then recorded through various microphones in different positions. It was very Heath Robinson.”
The first EP is out now and can be picked up here. It is a beautiful blend of ambient textures with piano, synths and choir. The second EP Sollbruchstelle II: Absent And Incorrect EP will be released on March 26. The final EP Sollbruchstelle III: Snacks Of Carelessness will be released on April 23 with the full album arriving on May 7.
Sollbruchstelle I: Become The Scenic Route’ EP
1. Håller tummana
2. heavenvetica
3. An argument that takes more than five minutes
4. Ask for me again
5. Sollbruchstelle
6. It turns into a she
7. Become the scenic route
Sollbruchstelle II: Absent And Incorrect’ EP Released March 26:
1. The revenge of noise on harmony
2. Felt compute, might delete
3. I wig on a cone
4. Caution your blast
5. An uncertain ratio
6. Noise will be noise
7. Absent and incorrect
Sollbruchstelle I – III Tracklist
1. Håller tummana
2. Heavenvetica
3. An argument that takes more than five minutes
4. Ask for me again
5. Sollbruchstelle
6. It turns into a she
7. Become the scenic route
8. The revenge of noise on harmony
9. Felt compute, might delete
10. I wig on a cone
11. Caution your blast
12. An uncertain ratio
13. Noise will be noise
14. Absent and incorrect
15. Rhyme undisturbed
16. Snacks of carelessness
17. A man with two watches
18. Norwegian blue
19. You can see his lips moving
20. Double Stop
21. Made not to fade
