Tycho (3) – Dive

Music like this doesn't come around very often.

Sadly, you eventually get to an age when you've listened to so much music that there is very little that sounds fresh.

Tycho definitely has influences from music like Ulrich Schnauss and Board of Canada, but what he manages to create from these kinds of influences is something so original and so beautiful that you don't think about who he sounds like for very long. After a couple of listens, this music just becomes purely Tycho's sound.

I saw Tycho perform in Phoenix last night, and it was like falling in love. I know that sounds absurd, but I really can't think of any other way to describe it. When you're standing in a dark room, your chemicals change, and the volume of the music paired with the images of slow-motion waves on the screen behind the musicians makes you feel like you're only half awake. This was probably the best way for this music to be heard.

There isn't a bad song on this album. There isn't even a mediocre song on this album. Listen to the full-length versions on Tycho's SoundCloud page, because the 30 second samples don't do the songs justice. And even though the songs are calm and gentle, there is so much emotion in each song that this album needs to be played as loud as possible. It's meant to be lost in.

Great album with an array of influences AND .....NO vocals thank the cosmos as I came to read their early music had vocals.
Take Tangerine Dream, the 80s sound of U2's Edge's guitar sound, throw in a nice simplistic rhythmic backbone and what you have is great music for a road trip.
CD sounds great no pops, skips or other artifacts you get from an lp! I plan on listening to this for a good many years to come!

I discovered Tycho with their album 2014 "Awake", a very ambient, shoegazing opus.

"Dive", released 3 years prior "Awake" is more "popish". It's not a bad thing, I was just not expecting it. I actually like the feel of this album. Not only because I've been huge fan of Boards of Canada and there are a lot of similarities between the two bands but also because I love that balearic electric guitar sound on most of their songs ( I can't really name that time of guitar or effect specifically). The music on this album is like a warm blanket that wraps around you and delivers cozy heat. It might be a bad thing for some but I kind of like the fact that it puts me to sleep or in a state of drowsiness. The song "Dive" starts with vocals and it actually startled me. The interest in this album doesn't to its BoC quality, I think I also love how intricated the sounds and layers are. The beat seems like a simple beat on each song but there's more to it.

Top quality release, I'm so happy to own both Dive and Awake. And finally, I have to mention the beautifully designed cardboard cases. I love the motifs, the colours, even on the CD sleeves. I actually had to buy Snap-N-Store CD storage boxes for my cardboard cases and digipacks so that they don't get shelf damage or dust.

I wanted to like this, it started off with a melody akin to BoC material (minus the atmosphere) promising interesting times. Alas the album proved to be a disappointment, no spark, no risks, no novelty. Especially at fault is the rather monotonous, thunky and flat-footed rhythms. Certainly ok for background music but not serious 'involvement' or 'listening'.

Tycho has been mentioned as the heir to Boards of Canada, and on DIVE, he shows his chops. The bucolic melody of "A Walk" is set against a steady beat and some rhythmic intakes of breath, while "Hours" offers a more steady beat. "Daydream" has hints of Ulrich Schnauss, and the vocals on the title track are given a perk amongst the upbeat rhythm. "Coastal Brake" goes a little deeper, and "Ascension" bears tracks of M83 on its DNA. The slow thuds of "Adrift" echo, as if through a glacial valley, while "Elegy" post-rocks its way through layers of reverb and sustained guitars. Dive into this album and stay submerged.

Imagine yourself riding through the country in your brand new convertible on a summer day… Imagine drifting above the stretching fields following the sunset towards the horizon with warm wind in your hair… Imagine floating above the clouds, climbing to the heights where the air is thin, and then diving off the coast towards the salty ocean… These are the images and feelings that are evoked when listening to Dive, Scott Hansen‘s latest studio album as Tycho released on the remarkable Ann Arbor based (Michigan, USA) Ghostly International.

Hansen first came onto the scene with his 2004 release on Gammaphone, Sunrise Projector. In 2006, he got picked up by the now defunct and dearly missed Merck, where Tycho gained critical acclaim with the expanded version of Sunrise Projector, published as Past Is Prologue. When Merck closed its doors in January 2007, Hansen was one of those musicians looking for a new home. He immediately found Ghostly International to be suitable for his sound with a digital release, The Daydream / The Disconnect. In 2009, Hansen teased us with a Coastal Brake EP on Ghostly, and finally unleashed Dive – a collection of floating melodies, uplifting beats, and dreamy vocals.

It’s nearly impossible to avoid comparisons of Dive to the sonic fields of Boards of Canada, synth soundscapes of Ulrich Schnauss, lounging head nodding of Bibio, childhood longing of M83, and mnemonic washes of Telefon Tel Aviv. Known in the graphic design world as ISO50, Hansen paints his auditory canvas with sun drenched colors and earthy tones. With nearly effortless yet flawless execution, Hansen justifies the long wait, and delivers one of our favorite albums of the year – featured in Headphone Commute’s Best of 2011 : Music For Missed Friends, Barbecues And Turntables.

Top 10 album of 2011. Great electronic, ambient, idm, postrock....everything!. very easy listening and highly crafted!...if you like Bonobo, BSBD, Plaid, BOC....give it a try!