Tone Depth takes us on an intergalactic journey of biblical proportions with his first single of the year ‘Walls’. His second release through Afterlife Recordings, ‘Walls’ is the massive and captivating manifestation of the Montreal-native’s belief that “Techno needs to be taken somewhere by surprise” and “provide a journey where you can travel the globe with your ears open and eyes closed”.
This is music that evolves beyond the boundaries of an ordinary club banger and actively stimulates your imagination. Last year we saw an array of material from Tone Depth through Timeless Moment, Spectrum Music, Warm Music and Armada Music. Speaking in an interview with Techno Station in 2016, he explained: “When I started producing music in the 90’s I was focusing a lot on making pieces of music with a filmmaker’s vision in mind and creating a movie with sound and layers of ambiences.” Despite the years that have passed you can still sense these early inclinations coming through in his latest single, which feels like it could work just as well in any major club as it would in a blockbuster sci-fi epic.
The first track on ‘Walls’ feels like a goliath spaceship being awoken; opening with arpeggiated riffs and an ominous, pulsating bassline. The beat builds into a thumping mechanical momentum like an engine whirring into action. Ethereal vocals drifting in and out come thanks to fellow Montreal artist GROJ, bringing a tone of warmth and humanity to the tune. That GROJ is a researcher in music and cognitive science becomes self-evident as the track continues: it feels like the music is tapping into your psyche and galvanising your synapses. ‘Nero’ shifts to a more minor key, plunging listeners into some dark and mysterious realm. Huge bursts of reverb build and then wash over you between sequences. This is a powerful track that’s bound to enchant even the more seasoned of techno-heads. The single culminates in the fragmented melodies of ‘Terra’, which stutter like the interrupted transmission of a beautiful, distant signal. Tone Depth’s goal of “putting the melody back into his music” and allowing “fluidity and simplicity” to reign is reflected here. The melody consistently flows freely and creatively, uninterested in conforming to any particular structure or convention.
All in all, Tone Depth has produced his best work to date: a single that transports your mind to uncharted places and compels you to experience his music live.
“Walls” is out now on Afterlife Recordings and can be purchased on Bandcamp.
Tracklist:
1. Walls
2. Nero
3. Terra
[Released: 19.02.21 on Afterlife Recordings]
