Innerst Inne – Solen träffar topparna först

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Swedish producer Andreas Tilliander abhors stylistic monotheism, no matter which moniker he’s using. Under the Mokira handle and his own name, for example, he’s purveyed innovative, glitchy hip-hop, cerebral yet playful Clicks & Cuts abstractions, deep-freeze ambient, and drone-based space-rock for a variety of esteemed labels (Raster-Noton, Mille Plateaux, Type, etc.). Now making his Further Records debut as Innerst Inne (translation: Deep Inside), Tilliander—along with production partner Johan T Karlsson, a.k.a. Familjen—stakes out new territory: minimal techno and downtempo with an extreme heart of darkness.

Over its five tracks, Solen träffar topparna först reinforces common perceptions about Scandinavian electronic music’s severe coldness. However, the way Innerst Inne alchemize elements from the sparsest materials into their tracks makes them sound infernally novel. Submerged in a subterranean murk, lead-off cut “Död mans kista” evokes a post-catastrophe rave, before bursting into a fleet, melancholy banger. Innerst Inne fabricate a world in which elation is an elusive goal, and is all the more rewarding for that. “Kör i vind” reveals the duo’s aptitude for forging austere soundscapes that foreshadow momentous downfalls. When they do bring in a melody amid the aural nihilism, it blooms with a delicate beauty that’s so unexpected, it’s funny.

Things soon return to Tilliander and Karlsson’s prevalent stoic tone with “Stjärnor visar vägen hem,” a frost-encrusted trip-hop piece that combines North Pole chillout vibes with chunky funk. “Du skulle tagit med dig” closes the record with implied, laggard rhythms, fraught orchestral overtures, icy oscillations, and a feeling of terminal grandeur. Everything’s shrouded in velvety darkness, but the melody suggests that, against great odds, hope springs eternal.

Eighteen years into his career, Andreas Tilliander (spurred on by Karlsson) is still challenging himself, still creating adventurous stylistic hybrids, still taking things to compelling extremes.