bradien - linden

Our new bid for 2009 shows every sign of becoming the most distinctive in spa.RK's discography, but even so it doesn't clash with the label's more electronic elements. With their first full length LP, Bradien hits on two factors that we at spa.RK take very seriously: using electronics as a creative tool which integrate perfectly into the musical language; and demonstrating an absolute consistency of material by separating the wheat from the chaff and pushing ideas to the maximum. And it doesn't take more than 30 minutes to make “Linden” an original and charming record, having a trace of melancholic, summery nostalgia – that captivates us. It's a work which incorporates microelectronica, bedside-table folk, evocative soundtracks and the warmest pop. Pop? Yes indeed. Bradien create a pop somewhere between laptop folk (here at spa.RK we know a lot about this, our .tape. is one of its most active proponents), the Ahornfelder label, the ocean's swell of the Beach Boys, the delicate Japanese scene, Frank Pourcel vinyls and experimental deconstruction, as well as having post-rock reminiscences, and where references to a Hawaian luau and Czech animation soundtracks also sit comfortably. And these are surely qualities that have caught the attention of the people they have played with in their short career, opening concerts for Yo La Tengo or playing alongside Shiu-Yeung Hui (from Maher Shalal Hash Baz) or Tom Brosseau. For this project they holed up in the studio together with Simon Wallbrook – one of the producers of Kool Keith's “The Return of Doctor Octagon” - which brought clarity to their already luminous and crystalline sound. Bradien is a band – yes! a band! - formed in 2005 and currently made up of three musicians (Balbini, Dave Harris and Matías Rossi, leader of the band and an artist with a wide experience in experimental electronica) and multiple collaborators (on cello, DJ/rupture collaborator Jenny Jones; the American poet John Giorno; Pablo Ribas; Pope from STA) which means that whether live or in the studio, they exchange instruments: bass, trumpet, melodica, xylophone and guitar being passed from one to the other to catch the fleeting magic of the moment. With two self-released records - “Minoi Tiare”, a gorgeous 3” CD (2006), and a 7” single shared with Scottish group Dosimat (2007) - Bradien haven't tried to hide their attention to detail and delicateness of a sound that never veers off into the naïve. But the best companion to their records is seeing them live, when the chaos of changing instruments works in their favour, and the amalgam of influences are reinforced with visuals which are totally in tune with their 50s references. Delightful.