ulrich schnauss & jonas munk: passage

Passage is the second collaborative album from London-based synth-wizard Ulrich Schnauss and Danish producer Jonas Munk. 11 tracks of breezy, blissed-out electronica and colorful ambient. As the album title denotes, there's a sense of movement in the music these two producers create together: a Schnauss and Munk composition starts one place and ends up someplace very different - something that can only rarely be said about electronic music, which traditionally has focused its energy on texture rather than composition. Sometimes their vivid, expansive soundscapes feels like the sonic equivalent of gliding towards the horizon through a panoramic landscape on a train. One's perspective changes slightly when in motion from one place to another - continuously approaching new things and leaving others behind. There's a prismatic, multi-dimensional quality to these 11 tracks, likely stemming from the fact that these two producers each have worked with a wide range of styles and musicians throughout their 15+ year careers: Ulrich cut his teeth as a drum and bass producer in Berlin, before releasing a string of highly influential neo-shoegazy records on labels such as Domino and City Centre Offices. Since moving to London in 2006, he's been a member of bands such as Engineers and Longview and remixed artists ranging from Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys to Mojave 3, and since 2013 he's been a member of legendary band Tangerine Dream. While Jonas Munk initially became known to the post-rock and electronica communities via his Manual albums on Morr Music and Darla Records, he's also had his hands in psychedelic rock (he's a noted producer in the European psych scene and is in the band Causa Sui) as well as film soundtracks and experimental minimalism. Both Ulrich and Jonas, however, have the skills of seasoned producers to weave the multitude of influences together in a well-defined sonic aesthetic. The result is a compelling set of melodic electronic music that echoes the past, yet feels fresh.