Artist: Various (compiled by Jon Hopkins)
Album: Late Night Tales
Label: Late Night Tales
Release date: 01/03/15
The latest instalment of Late Night Tales sees producer and composer Jon Hopkins delve into the deepest, most ethereal depths of his mind to blend 21 ambient cuts into one mesmerising collection. For the first listen, I found it difficult not to view the records through the prism of Jon Hopkins' 'Immunity', an album nominated for a Mercury Prize back in 2013. Apart from sharing common themes, LNT provides an insight into where Hopkins had drawn inspiration from to produce the likes of Sun Harmonics and We Disappear, which featured on the 2013 release.
Late Night Tales opens with an unreleased note from Berlin-based producer Ben Lukas Boysen - a light, wandering piano melody which sets the album's introspective tone. Boysen is one of several producers on the album with whom I was not familiar, the element of discovery an exciting aspect to all LNT compilations. Follower Hold Me Down by Darkstar, for example, is a wonderful slab of psychedelic pop I may never have encountered were it not for Hopkins' help. Yr Love by Holy Other tweaks the tempo, sampling Grace Jones to produce the sort of rhythm you might expect to accompany a climactic moment in an episode of Skins - a high compliment from a Skins fan like myself. Vocal highlight I Am Daylights sits perfectly six songs into Late Night Tales, with an Ian Brown-esque vocal which provides diversity without compromising flow.
The inclusion of Letherette's After Dawn injects a fantastic nervous energy, as does Hopkins' wonderful rendition of Yeasayer's I Remember. Coming from the same gentleman who whipped up a techno hurricane when releasing Open Eye Signal, covers such as this remind us just how far his talents stretch. Four Tet also appears, his stunning Gille Amma, I Love You resurrected to give the album a sprinkling of stardust. It sits right beside Alela Diane's acoustic Lady Divine, encapsulating the system of unusual but considered track placement that keeps the listener engaged. The album closes, as is the norm, with a spoken word piece, this time written and performed by Rick Holland, a fellow Brian Eno collaborator. The result is a brilliant piece of poetry that rounds off the album with aplomb.
Tight and purposeful, Hopkins himself explains best why this LNT works so well “I chose tracks not just because they have been important to me but because of how they sit together, putting as much thought into the transitions and overall narrative as I did into the track choices. I hope you enjoy it.”
WORDS | Jonathan Coll
Tracklist:
01. Ben Lukas Boysen - Sleepers Beat Theme
02. Darkstar - Hold Me Down
03. HolyOther - YrLove
04. Teebs - Verbena Tea with Rebekah Raff
05. Nils Frahm - More
06. Songs Of Green Pheasant - I Am Daylights
07. Jonsi & Alex Daniell - In The Sea
08. Evenings - Babe
09. Letherette - After Dawn
10. Jon Hopkins - I Remember (Yeasayer cover version)
11. David Holmes - Hey Maggy
12. Alela Diane - Lady Divine
13. Four Tet - Gillie Amma I Love You
14. School Of Seven Bells - Connjur
15. Peter Broderick - And It's Alright (Nils Frahm Remix)
16. Health - Before Tigers (Gold Panda Remix)
17. Last Days - Missing Photos
18. Bibio - Down To The Sound
19. A Winged Victory For The Sullen - Requiem For The Static King 1
20. Helios - Emancipation
21. Rick Holland - I Remember (Exclusive Spoken Word Piece)
