Mike Paradinas’ 1979 is a transportive ambient-IDM memoir, mapping Madrid’s outskirts and his own musical past into a quietly radiant double LP for Lapsus’ Balmat imprint.
Nostalgia without rose-tinted haze
I haven’t been to Majadahonda at dawn. I have definitely been in Majadahonda at dusk. I’ve visited El Escorial heaps of times. The track titles of Mike Paradinas’ 1979 album, the double LP just landing care of Barcelona’s Lapsus Records, echo the stops on my daily commute from Principe Pío train station in central Madrid. Balmat, Lapsus’ ambient wing, appear to have a soft spot for the musings of this musician of Spanish heritage. Paradinas, under his much-celebrated µ-Ziq moniker, offers 1979 as a following from 1977 with Manzana appearing as a paired release.
We find ourselves in the lush suburbs of “Majadahonda at Dawn” for the opener. Breathy oscillations are washed in reverb, strings ascend as moments of melody take hold. Delicate, the piece has an unsettling emptiness. Its sibling, “Majadahonda at Dusk” is a hazy soundtrack score. Broad analogue pads rise above a metallic thread as rainclouds begin to gather. Tracks are twinned across the double LP. Acid modulations bend and flex in “Clari 1,” grand notes soaring against fudgy bass and playful machine flutes, before blooming into the fairground innocence of “Clari 2.” “Galletas” and “Yemas” come from a similar sound palette. Translated to “Biscuits” and “Egg Yolks” (or a sugary sweet), both are warm and nostalgic, a 1970s synthesizer fuzz embracing both.
There are track titles the avid Paradinas fan will recognize from previous outings. “Houzz 14” continues on from past iterations on 1977 and Tusken Raiders compilation Houswerk. The most dance-floor centre of the album, the offering is joyously jittering, beats slipping and sliding on an icy 303 line. “Flotation” too sits on a drum bedding. Slow orbits of rave bleep are dragged back to barely 100bpm, shattered snare rolls draped in otherworldly atmospherics.
A quietly radiant memoir ::
The human voice has been part of µ-Ziq’s instrumentation for decades. On this album, he envelops and extends lyrics. Hauntingly, instrumentation and spoken word flow as one in “Billowy.” That spectral quality continues into “Tente” where the female voice undulates above ghostly currents before the shift and dawn of “Holmbush.”
A melody bubbles through in droplets, through the aquatic echo and reverb of “Radox.” Modulating without becoming overly laboured, the track is beautifully simple yet complex in its sound. Such subtlety runs through the album and culminates in the close of “Escorial.” Fragile and understated, this finale gently leads this wonderful collection to a close.
Lapsus have hit upon something very special with these µ-Ziq collections. An artist with more than three decades of experience, 1979 is an audio journey into Mike Paradinas’ past as well as being an expression of his deep knowledge and talent. Nostalgic, yes, but not rose-tinted. This is a superbly refreshing interpretation of ambient and IDM, a unique musical experience from a one-of-a-kind producer.
1979 is available on Balmat. [Bandcamp]
