Vitaphone

This time, Dany Janvier (the man behind Biobazar) wanted to offer a much more ambient sound than his previous albums. Adding to the ever-present beats, surprising atmospheres allow listeners to travel through the eras, transported beyond daily realities. The introspective album leaves its listeners with a pleasurable memory of a walk through the woods, an olfactory memory of hot tea on a winter afternoon, or the images of a silent movie from the 1920s. Vitaphone was born out of the composer’s desire to bring electronic music back to its primary original essence—working with analog equipment before processing the sound using technology. Almost 80% of the sounds on Vitaphone come from genuine instruments recorded in the studio. Several synthesizers from the 1960s were added to Studio Stereo Records’ gear and used to record melodies and background tracks. And in several cases, what you get on the album is the infamous “first take.” Beyond the keyboards, you can hear sounds from a xylophone, bass guitar, floor tom, harmonica, and sounds from unusual instruments, all combined for a warm, dirty, vintage sound. It’s a sound that brings to mind progressive rock from the 1970s inspired by space rock. Although it fits in no one specific genre, Vitaphone will nevertheless be found in psybient and chill-out listings. *Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and for nearly 2,000 short films produced by Warner Bros. between 1921 and 1930. Marketed by the Warner brothers, who risked all they had on this gamble, the sound system made their company one of the most powerful American production corporations.