magnétophonique ~ une cartographie idéale

magnétophonique ~ une cartographie idéale (not not fun, 2018)

Une Cartographie Idéale collects 12 gems from the Magnétophonique catalog to map a nuanced portrait of his evocative mirage exotica, wavering between bliss and abandonment, paradise and prison. Isolation and island fantasy intermingle in bewitching delirium, the sound of waves and tropical birds refracted through heat-stroked haze while melting cassettes unspool refracted melodies into lost horizons. Escape is heaven – until it isn’t; in the artist’s words: “You’ll never belong here". ~ not not fun

Tropical ambient always seems escapist in its haziness and nostalgia for the places you never been, but in case of this tape (and considering its name), it's rather an exquisite critique of escapism. What feels like an ordinary story about lush islands hidden somewhere far from the modern world's haste, slowly turns into a philosophical quest to the realms of what is human race has become. Yes, we love nature, somewhere deep inside, even though we destroy it slowly, intentionally or not. But this hazy sound realm rises rather not an ecological question – it hints that human being has become separated from its origin once and for all. What is the ideal map if not the territory itself? 

Slowly building a mesmerizing meandering around the listener to the state of dazed psychedelia, Magnétophonique leaves us without means to salvation. Here we are, finally alone with nature and what will we do? It may seem blissful – to get lost in those jungles, to rest without the need of being online all the time, but will this reality accept us? The Only Survivor Is Now Alone On The Island and it's doubtful that island is friendly because actually nature never was friendly to human creatures... That's why we started to build cities in first place. That's why we are capable of enjoying only the idea of wild unspoiled nature, riding through it on some vehicles or hiking through it with a proper set of tools we need for survival. A tropical paradise where one may find comfort and ease has always been utopic. And we love it and look for it everywhere, except nature itself. Human civilization could have taken a different path and maybe then you would read these lines from the organically grown smartphone with photosynthetic cells instead of pixels. But the way it is now, leaves us with a beautiful mirage only, a picture of tropicalia fueled by psychedelic sounds, lo-fi field recordings and tape hiss. It's definitely a pleasant image worth of hours of explorations on repeat, but... as it said earlier, you'll never belong here.

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