Project Description
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TIMOTHY
AND THE APOCALYPSE
‘Fragments’
Album Review
(11th May 2022)
Review by Melanie Griffiths
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The world according to Timothy under the moniker Timothy and the Apocalypse is a whirling dervish of multihued sonic landscapes differing in textural terrain with psychedelic light and shadow consistently at play. His third LP and latest album release “Fragments” reveals a world that Timothy is comfortably residing in and is inviting us to step into.
The producer from Sydney has been steadily building a catalogue of music that quietly rises above the fray. So much so that he’s garnered the attention of, and signed with UMG. Following on from his 2021 debut “Future So Bright” and subsequent release “Ethereal Event” Timothy leads us to another place constructed in reaction to the last few years living in a pandemic world. With “Fragments”, Timothy offers not a linear narrative but short vignettes of life unseen. Like putting your $1 coin into a view scope and trying to capture every detail to memory before the shutter comes back up.
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FRAGMENTS
Ego
If you miss the old days of pure downtempo house and trip-hop then Timothy’s opening track is going to hook you in before you even realise. “Ego” appeals to the most basic desire to move and its infectious groove quietly bops along and creates the feeling of starting a journey. The rhythmic bassline and electronic drums punctuate the song with a deep rumble that is enticing and seductive.
Aeroplane Hold
You may have already heard this track, having been released as the lead single from the album last April. In Timothy’s words, “I have no musical bounds and write with complete passion.” this lack of self-imposed restriction allows Timothy to create fluidly, building his material as he sees what best fits the song sometimes creating unexpected results. “Aeroplane Hold” could be described as quirky but it’s more a cacophony of unique elements that nod at other avant-garde producers like The KLF or Art of Noise. The vocals that drift into focus work like a pop-dance track and the surprising samples that pop up throughout are pleasantly amusing and intriguing.
The Golden Hour
Timothy adheres to a sense of balance and that features quite adeptly in “The Golden Hour”. It’s a track that sonically sounds like an astral composition creating a feeling of discovery but ultimately of peace. This is the track you want to play at that golden hour of the day inspiring the feeling of staring at orange soaked sunsets when you have nothing owing to the day except what you want to do in that next moment. The track invokes a sense of peace as it plays out leading to…
Incurable
Interestingly Timothy created “Fragments” in his new home that resides up in mountains on a country property far away from the hustle and manic energy of the city. Listening to “Fragments and in particular, “Incurable” you get a sense of his disconnection from the artificial, curated world city-dwellers often find themselves in. The track is a laidback piece exuding a rich palette of organic-inspired elements that feels like a yearning for rebirth.
On The Edge Of Darkness
“Fragments” suggests many things: our disconnection from nature, a lack of self-awareness and the need to rediscover our humanity. They’re hefty themes that Timothy tackles with compassion even though the inspiration came from a low point in Timothy’s life, “This album reflects a dark part of my life during the pandemic and dealing with a troubled future.” In “On The Edge Of Darkness”, Timothy deep dives into his consciousness utilising a downtempo drum and bass beat and vocals that drift in and out of the song like a persisting memory. Those who vibe with liquid drum and bass will fall deep into the groove of “On The Edge of Darkness”.
Elsewhere
From the immersive vibe of “On The Edge Of Darkness”, the next track “Elsewhere” seeks to shock the system and get us moving again. It’s on a track like “Elsewhere” that you have to imagine that Timothy will at some point incorporate a visual element to his music given that they provoke such a visceral response in the listener that it feels like you’re experiencing momentary synesthesia. Upbeat and colourful, “Elsewhere” plays with vocal samples and synth melodies to create an otherworldly sound that has pulsating energy behind it.
Wheels Of Misfortune
“Wheels of Misfortune” feels like we’ve rounded the corner a little. Again Timothy’s desire to create music which is comforting even in its dystopian tone makes “Fragments” such an indulgent listening experience. “Wheels Of Misfortune” features lilting female vocals over breakbeat drums and guitars that sound like they’re being played underwater. In Timothy’s world, there is still beauty in the darker parts of ourselves and his creative approach to exposing this with sincerity glows through.
Adventures Of A Nymphoid Barbarian
The final songs on “Fragments” feature a couple of collaborations and remixes that show another perspective and add another brushstroke to Timothy’s music. If you’re not invested in this track merely from the wild track title, then the pitching atmospheric changes Timothy produces in this melodic outing will have you totally engrossed. Remixed by Brisbane based, THØLEMOD, this track embraces a rhythm, not unlike an undulating ocean current. Their partnership is a good fit, producing a softer, slower tempo to the song that gives off a divine aura to the track.
Love is Going To Get You
This is another remixed track and this time by Floating Pyramids Bombed Love that features a slowed-down late 1990s electronic dance groove like early Groove Armada or Bonobo. It’s the soft place to land after an album that tried to take you to other worlds and prodded the boundaries of psychedelic electro music.
I’m Not Going To Make It Sad
This is a tongue-in-cheek way to end an album as equally bright as it was contemplative. “I’m Not Going To Make It Sad” is meant to leave us with a sense of optimism and shows Timothy is an artist and producer intent on telling a nuanced story filled with a coalescing palette of light and shade.
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Rather than being a disjointed, snapshot of a collection of tracks, “Fragments” is a cohesive story emerging from Timothy’s life experiences over the last couple of years. His drive to convey human emotion within songs that are rooted in electronic and sampled elements creates a diffused line between the real and the manufactured resulting in a soundscape that is engrossing and wholly unique.
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Check out Dave Bruce’s recent interview with Tim HERE
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Follow TIMOTHY AND THE APOCALYPSE
Instagram – Facebook – Soundcloud
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Press Release 8th April 2022 (below)
Downtempo artist/producer
TIMOTHY AND THE APOCALYPSE
piece together
“FRAGMENTS”
for a trippy third LP
Sydney, Australia raised, Timothy and the Apocalypse,
follows up to his enduring 2021 debut, establishing stability
on the downtempo/trip-hop scene with recent UMG signing
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Mass Experience Records have signed a multi-album deal with Universal Music Group, InGrooves, and WorldSound for both Timothy and the Apocalypse, Electronic Duo Mass Experience and label, Mass Experience.
His upcoming release, “Fragments” follows up two stunning debut LPs entitled “Future So Bright” and “Ethereal Event.”
While life can certainly be cruel, chaotic and unpleasurable, “Fragments” provides rhythmic bath water to soothe the soul. Through infectiously provocative core opening tracks like “Ego”, “Aeroplane Hold” (releases as the first single April 4th) and “Golden Hour,” Timothy dreams up a sonic womb for his messages to grow. “I have no musical bounds and write with complete passion,” says Timothy of his process towards this body of work.
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9 Theory
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Percussive brilliance narrates each of the arrangements on “Fragments”, highlighting a command for drum & bass that is a crucial element of Timothy and the Apocalypse as a sound- experience. One can only beg for visual elements, but they are all cast in the mind of the listener with closed eyes as one immerses oneself within his world. “I never write with any specific genre, only what’s happening in my life at the time. This album reflects a dark part of my life during the pandemic and dealing with a troubled future,” he says.
This third album from Timothy features collaborations with Floating Pyramids, 9 Theory and THØLEMOD. Tracks like “Incurable,” and “On The Edge Of Darkness,” grip us into the dystopian reality of our complete lack of respect for people and the Earth. What Timothy does is a true reorganizing of our priorities on a subconscious level. After purchasing a country property high up the mountains to escape society, he birthed “Fragments” to demarcate this period in history.
From “Elsewhere” we regain hope. Listeners at this point are entranced and reminded of their other favourite downtempo acts who fit the bill – Geotic in their 2017 album Abysma, Kudos Lokey and ATYYA come to mind. Interweaving narrative elements, many of the tracks have vocalized samples to personify human emotion. Electric guitar wetness rains throughout the LP.
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Floating Pyramids
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“Fragments” concludes with “Adventures Of A Nymphoid Barbarian” (remixed by Brisbane – based, THØLEMOD, releasing May 6th as a EP featuring 9 Theory and The Time Meddler), “Love Is Going To Get You (Floating Pyramids Bombed Love Remix), and “I’m Not Going To Make It Sad,” pedestalizing Timothy’s brilliance of wit and charm.
It seems that there is no end in sight for this apocalyptic treasure. “I’m building a recording studio up in the mountains completely off grid for international artists to use as a creative environment,” he says. “Fragments” is a complete body of work outlining the juxtaposition of hard and soft experiences that Timothy most cleverly endures.
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About TIMOTHY AND THE APOCALYPSE
Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Timothy and the Apocalypse started producing his brand of cinematic beats as a soundtrack for the end of the world.
His 2021 debut album Future So Bright established Timothy as a serious player on the downtempo/trip-hop scene, capturing the hearts of musical aficionados with The Mindful Cherub on Spotify’s Just Chill playlist, alongside Bonobo, Neil Frances, Tycho, Zero 7 and Four Tet.
His latest works, Ethereal Event dazzles with a distinctive production style that leaps across genre boundaries like psychedelic, dystopian film soundtracks, rave, drum and bass and soul, are among the influences that inspire Timothy’s songs. It’s like screaming along the freeway channel surfing the radio to random stations, yielding a unique head bopping tune every time.
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The Time Meddler
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The Mindful Cherub Remixes by 9 Theory, Time Meddler and Floating Pyramids out now!
The Mindful Cherub, is sure to entice anyone who recognises David Lynch as an exceptional electronica artist as well as an incredible filmmaker. There are plenty of odes to the cold psychedelic tones found in Pinky’s Dream, featuring Karen O; the tonally multifaceted track was written as a nod to 60’s Psyche escapism, and that’s exactly what it delivers.
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