Review of Urban Fairy Tales album by Nystada on Mobius Spin (mbsspn019)


 
Nystada on twitter
Mobius Spin on twitter

Last year in Autumn, Nystada got inspired by the new sound pack “Spectral Textures“, designed by Uwe Zahn (Arovane) for Ableton. It’s definitely a big part of the album. Not only a lot of sounds you hear on “Urban Fairy Tales” come from this device based on field recording and sound manipulation, but also the inspiration it offered was huge.


Urban Fairy Tales is Nystada’s second solo album and it is an excellent release. It has really well crafted sounds and each song is excellently arranged and produced. There are some great sounds used in the percussive rhythms including impact type sounds and processed drum samples which have great definition are are often intricately layered. There are some great soundscapes on the album, often with a great edge or tension between the different elements.
Gewitterregen A great soundscape to open, a sparse rhythm and really well layered sounds create a really nice tension from industrial sounding elements against a more ambient sound. The synth adds a great element of tension which builds through the song, released at the end.
2049 Opens with a great rhythm comprising of excellent sounds which are really well layered. I really like the almost call and response feel at times between the lead line and bass / background sound effects.
d vuus This song has an acid bassline against a synth which creates a great tension which is increased by really well layered background sounds. I really like the evolution of the song, layered elements create great contrasts especially with the addition of an uptempo rhythm, this really gives momentum with a final release.
Futura Another great opening soundscape through excellent layering of sounds. The song has a really good momentum and nice variation.
Into The Woods This song has great synth sounds to open leading into an excellently layered rhythm. This creates a kind of organic feel which contrasts excellently against the more industrial sounding effects and the synth adds another layer of contrast. The song has a great tension and evolution with a final release.
Pamperhaus Great rhythm to open, really well layered sounds. The bassline is quite subtle but gives momentum. The synth has a great sound, providing a flow and tension at times.
Breath Sparse synth line against a breath type sound opens the song which evolves with different sounds against the lead line. Again there is great sound selection, layering and contrast between these elements.
Metallofon This song opens with a rhythm reminiscent of wind chimes leading into an excellently layered rhythm with great sounds. The drone works really well against the sparse chords creating a great tension. Really nice changes in feel through the song too.
Spectral Opens with a great rhythm against solid background sounds. The song has really good synth sounds which creates a nice tension and movement. Great layering of sounds again.
Zeitdehnung This song has a different feel to the others. A really nice riff, great percussion and great synth sounds. Again the layering is excellent and the song has great contrast and tension between the different elements at times.
Red Sun Great synth sound and sparse percussion to open with, the song has quite an edgy sound. The squelchy synth lead sound is great, the song evolves with this sound contrasting against background sounds and has a really good momentum.