For his first solo recording since departing from
Death Cab for Cutie
in 2014, producer/multi-instrumentalist
Chris Walla
created an album of calm, sparse ambient pieces appropriately titled
Tape Loops
. This might come as a surprise to fans of his former band, or groups that he's worked with such as
Tegan and Sara
or
the Decemberists
, or even his 2008 solo album
Field Manual
, but he's had such a major impact in shaping
Death Cab
's sound that it seems natural for him to shift his focus to creating atmosphere rather than songwriting. It's also in line with his budding career as a composer of film scores. Most of the album's pieces consist of slowly unfolding loops of piano, synthesizer, bass tones, and gently ringing delay, often with a warm layer of tape hiss. They generally feel reflective and somewhat sad or wistful. Several of the selections sound like they could be direct sequels to
Brian Eno
's pioneering
Music for Airports
album. It's not hard to hear how some of these melodies could have been incorporated into
songs or soundtrack work, but here they're given room to breathe, stretch, and inhabit space. While most of the pieces loop for up to 11 minutes rather than building and developing, "I Believe in the Night" feels more like a proper song, clocking in at only four minutes and featuring layers of vibrating organ and electric piano and a slowly expanding atmosphere. Closing track "Flytoget" plays with adding gentle acoustic guitar notes to evenly spaced, sustain-heavy piano patterns, ending the album on a slightly more lighthearted note than one might expect. Even though
feels cold and wintry and with a hint of melancholy or regret, it's still a soothing, reflective, refreshing listen. ~ Paul Simpson