Tom Trago - Tide Will Turn - Jong Nederland - JNL03

a1. Number Own
a2. Tide Will Turn
b1. Understood

digital: https://jongnederland.bandcamp.com/album/tide-will-turn
vinyl: https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/tide-will-turn

During 2020/21, when the global pandemic raged and hundreds of millions of people around the world were confined to their homes, Tom Trago kept himself busy by increasing his daily music-making activities. As he had done pre-pandemic, Trago set aside time each day to improvise and record tracks in the studio attached to his home in Bergen on the Netherlands’ North-West coast.

Tide Will Turn, Trago’s third release on the Jong Nederlands label he established to share his work, showcases three such outings. As with previous EPs on Jong Nederlands, each of the tracks was created using a small selection of electronic instruments, drumcomputers and effects units.

EP opener ‘Number Own’ is typically emotive and quietly colourful, with chiming lead lines, sustained synthesizer chords, stirring riffs and fluid electronic motifs rising above bustling, body-popping beats and a smooth, jazzy bassline. Bubbly and ear-pleasing, it’s the aural equivalent of watching sunlight bounce off the waves that wash up on the beach just a few hundred metres from Trago’s studio.

Title track ‘Tide Will Turn’ is an altogether more relaxed and becalmed affair. Its drowsy chords and gentle, undulating melodies slowly sashay their way between clicking drum machine percussion and slow-motion beats. Trago picks things up again on ‘Understood’, wrapping attractive synth stabs, cascading lead lines and fizzing electronics around a pulsating bassline and breathless, all-action, electro-influenced beats. It provides a fittingly attractive and emotion-rich conclusion to another fine batch of straight-to-tape improvisations.

Tom Trago - Tide Will Turn (JNL 03) Snippets

Pre-order: https://jongnederland.bandcamp.com/album/tide-will-turn
Vinyl: https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/tide-will-turn

During 2020/21, when the global pandemic raged and hundreds of millions of people around the world were confined to their homes, Tom Trago kept himself busy by increasing his daily music-making activities. As he had done pre-pandemic, Trago set aside time each day to improvise and record tracks in the studio attached to his home in Bergen on the Netherlands’ North-West coast.

Tide Will Turn, Trago’s third release on the Jong Nederlands label he established to share his work, showcases three such outings. As with previous EPs on Jong Nederlands, each of the tracks was created using a small selection of electronic instruments, drumcomputers and effects units.

EP opener ‘Number Own’ is typically emotive and quietly colourful, with chiming lead lines, sustained synthesizer chords, stirring riffs and fluid electronic motifs rising above bustling, body-popping beats and a smooth, jazzy bassline. Bubbly and ear-pleasing, it’s the aural equivalent of watching sunlight bounce off the waves that wash up on the beach just a few hundred metres from Trago’s studio.

Title track ‘Tide Will Turn’ is an altogether more relaxed and becalmed affair. Its drowsy chords and gentle, undulating melodies slowly sashay their way between clicking drum machine percussion and slow-motion beats. Trago picks things up again on ‘Understood’, wrapping attractive synth stabs, cascading lead lines and fizzing electronics around a pulsating bassline and breathless, all-action, electro-influenced beats. It provides a fittingly attractive and emotion-rich conclusion to another fine batch of straight-to-tape improvisations.

Tom Trago - Tide Will Turn (Snippet)

Tom Trago - Understood (Snippet)

Tom Trago - Number Own (Snippet)

Bookings: 
EU & ROW: tomtrago@frills.de
AUS: m@novel.com.au

Press: 
tessa@voyage-select.com / tomtrago@frills.de

Tom Trago – one of the leading lights of the Dutch electronic music underground, who defined the house and electronica sound of Amsterdam like few others. He is a globe-trotting DJ, producer, live performer and label owner who enjoys nothing more than championing both overlooked gems and fresh sounds from his own country. Tom Trago held residencies at renowned Amsterdam institutions Trouw and De School and name any prestigious festival or clubs worldwide – pretty sure he’s played there.

He once claimed that he felt a physical need to make music every day, and it’s hard to think of anyone whose immersion in music is quite as complete. Tom Trago is known for his versatility across electronic music genres, deep beats and grooves, and remixes for giants such as Depeche Mode. His genre-blurring sound and unique style have made him an influential figure in the world of electronic music.