The Underground of Happiness

This is a kind of concept album about life in the modern metropolis, with a soundtrack of machines at work, from the Swedish duo made up of Malcolm Pardon and Peder Mannerfelt . It’s one of the most evocative and strangely groovy collections you’ll come across. Favouring analogue synths over digital, they’ve managed to capture the rhythmic, repetitive, grinding, but also messy, untidy, unpredictable character of urban life. Or, if you prefer, they’ve made an intriguingly semi-pop series of electronic instrumentals, that also manage to have some jazz improv and Krautrock in them. The elements range from the buzz of static to broad, sweeping synths and dubby bass pads, stop-start industrial clanks and the swoop, suck and throb of circuitry in general (one track is actually called The suck ), all combining in a sort of machine swing dance class of the (near) future. However, one of the most appealing features of the album is its terrific, busy, spidery piano riffs (used to particularl...

We've mentioned Swedish duo Roll the Dice more than once recently, and now they've released the first track from their upcoming new album ( In dust on The Leaf Label , Sept 12). It's an instrumental tune, Calling all workers , and features intoxicating layers of field recordings (the clarion call of a ringing bell), busy bass grooves and stately piano and vintage synth. It really is brilliant. The accompanying film by Frode Fjerdingstad uses an unexpectedly rural/seaside setting, but a close-up on the relentless industry of ants in the undergrowth recalls the "workers" of the title. Roll The Dice - Calling All Workers from Roll The Dice on Vimeo . And you can download it for free here. I haven't heard the whole album yet but on the basis of this it could be something. Calling All Workers by Roll the Dice

The Leaf Label , that wonderful English independent (Efterklang, Oh No Ono, Murcof, Colleen etc.), announced a new signing earlier in the year, the Stockholm duo Roll the Dice , who are Malcolm Pardon and Peder Mannerfelt. Their first album for Leaf, second in all, comes out next month, it's called In dust . As a teaser/trailer for the album, there's a fascinating piece of film made by Frode Fjerdingstad . You can watch below - it's like some futuristic Sergio Leone western, shot by Nic Roeg, with a script by Cormac McCarthy and a foreboding soundtrack of electronic rumbles and whines. Roll The Dice - In Dust from Roll The Dice on Vimeo . So far, I've just heard a couple of bits and pieces from the album, including its last track See you Monday . That's a fantastic blend of Steve Reich -like piano repetitions and Kratfwerk -style kosmische, with a great fuzzy, pulsing synth heartbeat. You'll have to wait another while to hear it, but the band have put toge...