Having
amassed a legion of loyal fans with his signature blend of electronic,
psychedelic and rock influences, the artist known as Yppah (pronounced
“yip-ah”) is back with perhaps his most intimate work to date. Tiny
Pause, due for release on Counter Records October 16, finds Yppah
adopting an enormous technical shift in his writing process, moving away
from largely software-based production and live instrumentation to
modular synthesizers and samplers. Inspired in large part by 8mm footage
and self-described “creepy/beautiful” archived film found on the
internet, Yppah draws on the same palette of the living landscape, human
memory and emotive warmth found in his prior work and magnifies it,
echoing the sounds of Tycho, Baths and Boards of Canada.
Yppah (born Joe Corrales Jr.) has forged a career marked by ethereality
and dynamism. Brought up on equal parts My Bloody Valentine and hip-hop,
he has utilized a number of instruments and techniques in forging his
place in the uplifting (yet firmly grounded) world his music inhabits.
Previous records (2006’s You Are Beautiful At All Times, 2009’s They
Know What Ghost Know, 2012’s Eighty One) have harnessed his cultural
heritage and relentless curiosity to brilliant effect, landing
placements in films (21), video games (Alone In The Dark) and television
series (House, CSI) as well as taking him on tour around the globe.
Tiny Pause is informed in large part by shifts in Yppah’s life since his
last work. Having toured the album, moved from Texas to Southern
California and transitioned into more ambitious commercial work (for
trailers, sound design and music libraries), Yppah soon found himself
embracing hardware in a big way, buying and selling gear constantly
while writing to find the best-suited combination for his workflow. The
addition of two dogs to his home and a newfound hobby of surfing round
out Yppah’s biggest influencers for the direction of the new record. And
it all shows - the celestial dips and rises in “Occasional Magic,” the
cascade of drums in “Little Dreamer,” the fractured ascent of “Spider
Hands,” and the human-tinged glitches of “Neighborhoods” all point to an
artist matured not only in sound but in perspective.
releases 16 October 2015
