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A new 10-track record from the Sheffield artist, 9696 Dream represents the first in a series of three new 96 Back releases on Local Action scheduled across 2021, climaxing with a new full-length album this Autumn.

Barely out of his teens, 96 Back has spent the last three years turning heads with music that’s as evocative as it is intricate. Prodigiously talented and with UK rave history in his blood — he’s the son of legendary Sheffield promoter Matthew Swift and studied under the tutelage of hometown hero Liam O’Shea — he cut his teeth with releases on Central Processing Unit, Hypercolour and Happy Skull, while also collaborating with like-minded souls such as Skee Mask, Happa and Henzo.

Last year 96 Back signed to Local Action for the release of Sugilite, a four-track EP that showcased him at both his heaviest and most delicate, picking up support across the board and cementing his status as “one of the most exciting producers in the UK.”

The months since Sugilite have seen 96 Back hitting all-time high levels of productivity, creating some of his most advanced and evocative music yet — both solo and with Special Request, who included a collaboration with 96 Back in his recent DJ-Kicks.

9696 Dream is the first of three releases due from 96 Back on Local Action this year, a 10-track record of new material that plays as a continuous 31 minutes and introduces an audio language of sorts that flows through all three releases. Honing in on the dreamier side of 96 Back’s music, 9696 Dream closes on ‘Friend Moment’ — a touching collaboration with one of his oldest friends, Joe Paisan. 

Mastered by Warp Records founder Rob Gordon with artwork by regular visual collaborator Air Max ‘97, 9696 Dream will be released on March 16 both digitally and as a limited edition cassette.  

Credits:
• All tracks written & produced by 96 Back
• Mastered by Rob Gordon
• Artwork by Oliver van der LugtWHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY:

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY:

Hailing from Los Angeles, Jimmy Tamborello has been a key figure in refining what today is considered electronica for over 20 years. "The Seas Trees See" is the first of two Dntel albums to be released in 2021 by Morr Music in collaboration with Les Albums Claus: a free-floating and rather loose stroke of musical genius, giving ambience a whole new meaningful context. It combines crackles and hiss with deep, yet modest, synths and poignant, yet elegant, vocals and lyrics. "Away", its counterpart album, will follow later in 2021. It will showcase Dntel’s unapologetic love for pop music from a long-gone era, presenting yet another aspect of his multi-faceted personality. Dntel has always covered many musical grounds – from the pop-infused hits on "Life Is Full Of Possibilities" (Plug Research, 2001) to his much more abstract works on "Aimlessness" (Pampa Records, 2012), "Human Voice” (Leaving Records, 2014), and his electronics for The Postal Service (Sub Pop). Whatever his style – Tamborello has retained his very own musical voice.

When it comes to producing music, it can be a good idea to get away from the studio and find a more relaxed environment. Inspiration does not necessarily require huge bass bins. Fewer pieces of gear make it easier to really focus on ideas first and let them be. After recording "Hate In My Heart" – his most recent album, released in 2018 – this way, Tamborello continued working in that fashion, mainly jamming and getting ideas together for upcoming live shows. One of the first results of this creative process was the opening track of "The Seas Trees See" – a cover version of "The Lilac and the Apple", originally recorded by Californian folk singer Kate Wolf in 1977. Tamborello turns the acapella song into a vocoder-like extravaganza. Working with the original recording, the track perfectly sets the tone for what "The Seas Trees See" turns out to be – a quiet yet mesmerizing journey through sound and emotion, bringing together his very own sound design, disguised samples and an incredible feel for moods and atmospheres.

"I thought a lot about making an album that you would find in a thrift store", Tamborello remembers. Something "like a mysterious collection of sketches that leaves a lot unanswered. It doesn’t beg for attention or have any big moments." Despite its perfect and gentle flow, it is worth digging deeper, to surrender oneself to all the painstakingly placed details. Whether the beautiful and haunting piano work on "Movie Tears" or the almost sidechained-sounding "Yoga App" – every aspect of this album has been beautifully crafted, often bringing one of life’s biggest questions to the table: What if? What would have happened if Tamborello would have done this on that track or that on this track? It is good that he did not. Small things add up to something great, diverse and riveting.

The subtlety of his latest endeavor is fascinating. It opens up a new world, in which small musical sketches mean at least as much as perfectly produced pop anthems – if not more. 

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY:
Sam: Pharoah…
Pharoah: Huh…?
Sam: Were you asleep? I’m sorry…
Pharoah: No no… I was listening… and dreaming… and listening to music in my head…
Sam: Oh wow… sorry.
Pharoah: Many times, people think I might be asleep… but in fact, I am just listening to music in my head. I’m always listening… to the sounds around me… and playing, in my mind… and sometimes I dream.
Sam: What were you dreaming about?
Pharoah: I’m on a ship. In the ocean. Bears coming around smoking cigars. The bears are singing, ‘We have the music. We have what you’re looking for.’
* * *
Pharoah: How you like that take, Sam?
Sam: It’s cool. I think the bit in the middle, where it stops again…I think you can hear…
We were both kind of confused. I like it as well because it sounds like two musicians that are trying to guide each other.
Pharoah: I think that’s it right there. It came out different. It came out good though.
Sam: You happy?
Pharoah: Yeah, I’m cool with it.
Sam: Okay. Yeah, I think your playing is beautiful.

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WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE

WHAT THE LOVELY COVER LOOKS LIKE:

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As escapism from corporate banality turned the corner in the ‘90s, a new generation of vibrant, software generated soundscapes emerged. Communal access to the internet propagated the new hive mind of ideas online, giving way to smoother, stress-free textures. The PC revolution opened the gateway to ray-traced playgrounds of color and light, allowing for visions of utopic proportions to manifest themselves on screensavers far and wide. Boot up your machine, load the software on this floppy diskette, and drop out of a reality bounded by the physical laws of the universe.

Numero 95 is the soundtrack to the screen saver fever dream we’re all trying to climb back into. Eight droplets of proto-vaporwave, synthesized in vinyl (or digital) form, fresh from Numero’s archive of forgotten sounds. Are you looking for that half way point between smooth jazz and new age? Mac and PC? Quantum Leap and the X-Files? This software is for you.

Housed in a replica floppy diskette, Numero 95 explores an early computer music unbound by scene or region. Eight solo pioneers vibing out at home in their headphones, traveling as far as the sound card would allow. This is music that barely escaped the hard drive and yet percolates at the edges of the algorithm 30 years later.

Welcome to Numero 95.

Credits
Produced by Ali Najdi, Ken Shipley & Rob Sevier.
Compiled by Ali Najdi, Douglas McGowan, Adam Luksetich, Stephen Arndt, Ken Shipley & Rob Sevier.
Mastered by Carl Saff at Carl Saff Mastering.
Production Coordination by Riley Manion.
Design by Field of Grass.
Special thanks to Izzy Fradin, Mario Martinez & Paradise Is A Frequency.