Sharing is Caring

Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen finally release their unique Nordic electronic sounds in album size.

Get the limited edition 12" exclusively on Record Store Day 2015.
Order the album on 2xLP/CD/DL: http://www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP062
Or order the album DL via iTunes: http://snip.ftpromo.net/kiasmos

After dropping several tracks and performing at select festivals throughout the years, Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen dedicated the year 2014 to explore the area in-between Ólafur’s more acoustic, piano-based solo work and Janus’s synth-heavy electro pop, with their collaborative electronic project Kiasmos.

By focusing solely on their self-titled debut album, Ólafur and Janus have been able to combine and further develop their unique sound aesthetics to complete an album driven by their mutual love for electronic music. Made in Ólafur’s newly build studio in Reykjavík, Iceland, a majority of the album was recorded using acoustic instruments next to a variety of synthesisers, drum machines and tape delays. It features a live drummer, string quartet and Ólafur performing on the grand piano, producing an ambient, textured sound, which makes it a perfect home listen and equally danceable record. If you listen closely, you can spot them record the thumb piano, finger snapping and even the sound of the metal grinder of a lighter slowly to replace the usual electronic hi-hat sounds, giving the album a far more intimate and unique atmosphere.

“We decided to start almost completely over with this record, so most of the material is written this year with the idea of making a record that can stand as one piece rather than a collection of songs. I am very excited to get a proper record out exploring a different territory than I am used to. I touch a lot on electronic genres in my own music but never have the opportunity to go full out electronic like we do here.” – Ólafur Arnalds

“The Kiasmos project has been around since 2007, but because of all our other projects we never really got the time to sit down and write all the tracks we always wanted to. So when we early this year finally found the time to sit down and make a full length album there was so much we wanted to try out. The result surprised us a bit, it's deeper and more emotional than we imagined it to be, but that's the beauty of being able to make an album.” – Janus Rasmussen

Kiasmos – s/t will be released on Double-Vinyl, CD and Download via Erased Tapes on October 27th, 2014.

TRACK LISTING: 

1. Lit  2. Held  3. Looped  4. Swayed  5. Thrown  6. Dragged  7. Bent  8. Burnt 

LIVE DATES:	

17.08. HAMBURG (DE) - Dockville Festival			
26.09. BRUSSELS (BE) – Bozar Electronic Arts Festival
27.09. DEN HAAG (NL) – Todays Art Festival

OFFICIAL WEBSITES:  	facebook.com/kiasmos · erasedtapes.com

Kiasmos

Looped

Buy 12"/DL

Kiasmos – Looped

Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen finally release their unique Nordic electronic sounds in album size.

'Full of melancholy-frosted electronics and emotive swells of classical piano, the new single from Nordic duo Ólafur Arnalds﻿ and Janus Rasmussen is a delicate, icy slowburn' – NME

Pre-order the CD/2LP/DL: www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP062
Pre-order the DL via iTunes and receive the album version of 'Thrown' instantly: snip.ftpromo.net/kiasmos

After dropping several tracks and performing at select festivals throughout the years, Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen dedicated the year 2014 to explore the area in-between Ólafur’s more acoustic, piano-based solo work and Janus’s synth-heavy electro pop, with their collaborative electronic project Kiasmos.

By focusing solely on their self-titled debut album, Ólafur and Janus have been able to combine and further develop their unique sound aesthetics to complete an album driven by their mutual love for electronic music. Made in Ólafur’s newly build studio in Reykjavík, Iceland, a majority of the album was recorded using acoustic instruments next to a variety of synthesisers, drum machines and tape delays. It features a live drummer, string quartet and Ólafur performing on the grand piano, producing an ambient, textured sound, which makes it a perfect home listen and equally danceable record. If you listen closely, you can spot them record the thumb piano, finger snapping and even the sound of the metal grinder of a lighter slowly to replace the usual electronic hi-hat sounds, giving the album a far more intimate and unique atmosphere.

“We decided to start almost completely over with this record, so most of the material is written this year with the idea of making a record that can stand as one piece rather than a collection of songs. I am very excited to get a proper record out exploring a different territory than I am used to. I touch a lot on electronic genres in my own music but never have the opportunity to go full out electronic like we do here.” – Ólafur Arnalds

“The Kiasmos project has been around since 2009, but because of all our other projects we never really got the time to sit down and write all the tracks we always wanted to. So when we early this year finally found the time to sit down and make a full length album there was so much we wanted to try out. The result surprised us a bit, it's deeper and more emotional than we imagined it to be, but that's the beauty of being able to make an album.” – Janus Rasmussen

Kiasmos – s/t will be released on Double-Vinyl, CD and Download via Erased Tapes on October 27th, 2014.

TRACK LISTING:

1. Lit 2. Held 3. Looped 4. Swayed 5. Thrown 6. Dragged 7. Bent 8. Burnt

LIVE DATES:

29.11.2014 London (UK) – Village Underground
05.12.2014 Berlin (DE) – Watergate
06.12.2014 Istanbul (TR) – Salon
15.01.2015 Groningen (NL) – Eurosonic

OFFICIAL WEBSITES: facebook.com/kiasmos · erasedtapes.com

Bent

Buy 2xLP/CD/DL

Kiasmos - Bent

Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen finally release their unique Nordic electronic sounds in album size.

Pre-order the CD/2LP/DL: http://www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP062
Pre-order the DL via iTunes and receive the album version of 'Thrown' instantly: http://snip.ftpromo.net/kiasmos

After dropping several tracks and performing at select festivals throughout the years, Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen dedicated the year 2014 to explore the area in-between Ólafur’s more acoustic, piano-based solo work and Janus’s synth-heavy electro pop, with their collaborative electronic project Kiasmos.

By focusing solely on their self-titled debut album, Ólafur and Janus have been able to combine and further develop their unique sound aesthetics to complete an album driven by their mutual love for electronic music. Made in Ólafur’s newly build studio in Reykjavík, Iceland, a majority of the album was recorded using acoustic instruments next to a variety of synthesisers, drum machines and tape delays. It features a live drummer, string quartet and Ólafur performing on the grand piano, producing an ambient, textured sound, which makes it a perfect home listen and equally danceable record. If you listen closely, you can spot them record the thumb piano, finger snapping and even the sound of the metal grinder of a lighter slowly to replace the usual electronic hi-hat sounds, giving the album a far more intimate and unique atmosphere.

“We decided to start almost completely over with this record, so most of the material is written this year with the idea of making a record that can stand as one piece rather than a collection of songs. I am very excited to get a proper record out exploring a different territory than I am used to. I touch a lot on electronic genres in my own music but never have the opportunity to go full out electronic like we do here.” – Ólafur Arnalds

“The Kiasmos project has been around since 2009, but because of all our other projects we never really got the time to sit down and write all the tracks we always wanted to. So when we early this year finally found the time to sit down and make a full length album there was so much we wanted to try out. The result surprised us a bit, it's deeper and more emotional than we imagined it to be, but that's the beauty of being able to make an album.” – Janus Rasmussen

Kiasmos – s/t will be released on Double-Vinyl, CD and Download via Erased Tapes on October 27th, 2014.

TRACK LISTING: 

1. Lit  2. Held  3. Looped  4. Swayed  5. Thrown  6. Dragged  7. Bent  8. Burnt 

LIVE DATES:	

17.08. HAMBURG (DE) - Dockville Festival			
26.09. BRUSSELS (BE) – Bozar Electronic Arts Festival
27.09. DEN HAAG (NL) – Todays Art Festival

OFFICIAL WEBSITES:  	facebook.com/kiasmos · erasedtapes.com

Burnt

Kiasmos - Burnt

Plausibility (Dark is the Light Mix)

Eddy Romero, Lobo Miro - Wolfs (Original Mix)_POBLA MSTRD

A Forest

Eleven (feat. Mohna)

Mare

Pre-order 'Blurred' on LP/DL: http://phonofile.link/blurred

Kiasmos mark their return in 2017 with a new 12” EP titled Blurred — available worldwide on October 6th via Erased Tapes.

Since their 2015 Swept EP, the duo have been performing shows extensively across the world. After writing and recording together in their native Iceland this year, the pair will be bringing a glimpse of light to a particularly gloomy time of year as their light sounds are brighter than ever.

Words from Ólafur and Janus, August 2017: 
￼ 
￼￼“To write new material felt like a new beginning for us after two years of touring. The plan was to ￼write something a tad darker than our previous stuff. Spring in Reykjavík had other plans though, as this turned out to be our brightest release to date.” — Janus Rasmussen

￼“Stimming was one of the reasons we started making four-on-the-floor music and we have been listening to Bonobo since we were young, so it was a great honour that they wanted to contribute remixes for the EP.” — Ólafur Arnalds

￼The EP closes with remixes from British producer Bonobo and German electronic musician Stimming, taking tracks Blurred and Paused into different coloured realms.

The cover art featuring the iconic Kiasmos symbol is by long-time Erased Tapes collaborator Torsten Posselt at FELD.

TRACK LISTING

1. Shed 
2. Blurred
3. Jarred 
4. Paused 
5. Blurred (Bonobo Remix) 
6. Paused (Stimming Remix)

WEBSITE: www.kiasmos.is

Kiasmos - Blurred

Pre-order the full 'Thrown EP' here: http://erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP044

Buy the '65' split EP with Rival Consoles here: http://erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP013

---

Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen's collaborative project Kiasmos continues to spread Icelandic techno with new Thrown EP featuring remixes by FaltyDL and 65daysofstatic.

After having revealed the title track Thrown via XLR8R in April, Kiasmos announce the release of their Thrown EP featuring brand new track Wrecked and two guest remixes by FaltyDL – one of New York's finest electronic producers – and UK's industrial post rock pioneers 65daysofstatic in the form of a12"/DL on Erased Tapes.

A1: THROWN
Ólafur explains: ‘Thrown is the first track of the "New Kiasmos", so to speak. Actually, Thrown is kind of a remix of a new Ólafur Arnalds track that hasn't even been released yet.’ ‘It has become the track that we use as a reference for all our newer stuff’, adds Janus.

A2: THROWN (FALTYDL REMIX)
‘Remixing used to be a very special thing. Not so much anymore. And when you're done, it will end up as a free download and most likely not on vinyl. It's bullshit. So when I get the opportunity to make an actual record, an object that will last longer then any of us, I jump on it. I have pleasures in my life. Doing this remix was one of them’, says Drew Lustman aka FaltyDL.

B1: WRECKED
Janus: ‘I don't really know what we were thinking when we started working on Wrecked.’ ‘Wrecked is our experiment with a new Doepfer synth. The song is severely out of tune’, adds Ólafur.

B2: WRECKED (65DAYSOFSTATIC REMIX)
‘It was quite a challenging remix to do, because it's such a minimal, understated track. The usual 65 approach of pulling out key refrains and messing with them didn't work because the bass is such a unique, dark sound. Likewise, I was reluctant to add too much new material because each attempt at that quickly veered into writing what sounded like a new song. Too many remixes these days are done to provide quick and easy bonus tracks for artists to giveaway, which is a shame, because when done properly, I think a remix is a great way to see a track you're familiar with as a listener in a new way’, explains Paul Wolinski of 65daysofstatic.

Janus: ‘I'm really excited about the remixes. They are both very different from each other and give the songs a new life. It's always great fun to hear someone make the tracks their own.’


ABOUT:

Kiasmos is the brainchild of Icelandic modern classical composer Ólafur Arnalds and Bloodgroup mastermind Janus Rasmussen from the Faroe Islands. Based in Reykjavík, Arnalds used to work as a sound engineer – often for Rasmussen's main project Bloodgroup – where the two musicians discovered their common love for minimal, experimental techno music. They eventually became best friends, and Janus now often accompanies Ólafur's solo shows with his electronics. ‘I am really enthusiastic about this project. Finally, I can make music that people can dance to. Something refreshing for the weekends’, explains Arnalds in an interview with the German electronic music magazine Beat. The project is a good way for both artists to ‘get out of the house’ so to speak and do different music to what they normally do. Having released their 65/Milo split 12" with label mate Rival Consoles in 2009, this year sees the duo return with the hotly tipped Thrown EP and a string of European club shows. 

'A rich production of deep, subdued techno...sure to stick in your head long after the track is through' – XLR8R

'Linear electronic music that propels you to pastel horizons...a dreamy new track to ease you through the day. A gentle groove and washes of sonic colour underpin a deceptively simple melody that buries itself inside your head' – Electronic Beats

'Thrilling stuff, primed for the more discerning floors' – Bleep

'Extremely elegant and addictive, sharp and hypnotic' ★★★★ – The Milk Factory

The Anxiety to Please

HVOB

Related tracks