Galaktlan’s Taavi Laatsit first appeared at the
tail end of the nineties as part of Uni, a duo he formed
in 1998 with Hendrik Luuk. The pair have to this day
released one album, Kosmikud, on Kohvirecords.
This was followed a few months later by a collection
of Laatsit’s early recordings published on a limited
edition CDR under the Vonsuck tag. Dark and moody, these
compositions provided the blueprint for Laatsit’s
first main solo project. His first album as Galaktlan,
Sinine Platoo,
released in 2002 on Kohvirecords, investigated a series
of ambient settings built around sumptuous, yet sparse
sonic formations set against minimalist backdrops, at
times reminiscent of the work of Biosphere,
Deathprod or Pete
Namlock.
With his sophomore album, Galaktlan moves into friendlier
and warmer territories. Inspired by film music, Constance,
taking its name from Alexandre Dumas’s Three
Musketeers character Constance Bonacieux, collects
here a series of laidback electronic instrumentals.
If some of the elements that made Sinine
Platoo are still present here, Laatsit adorns
his arid landscapes with swathes of analogue waves and
textures wrapped around beautifully evocative melodies,
and, crucially, adds beat structures to support them.
From the opening Axister, the journey accomplished
by Laatsit with Galaktlan becomes very apparent. Although
the track begins with a gentle metallic-tinted wave,
it develops into a fuller composition, lead by a relentless
drum sequence. Repeating the process all the way through
Constance, Laatvit manages to approach his
compositions from a different angle with pretty much
every new track. Turbulents, Crystal
or Foor are all perfectly formed electronic
moments. Mode and Laanetaguse prove
a bit less rewarding as the shadow of Boards
Of Canada becomes a tad too obvious.
Elsewhere, on tracks such as Kindralmidi or
Zolushka, which closes the album, the tone
becomes more inspired, with Laatsit crafting superbly
complex melodies within pertinent soundscapes, at times
reminiscent of Ennio Morricone, to reveal the emotional
depth of this work. With these two pieces, Laatsit reaches
the cinematic peak he is clearly aiming for.
While providing a variety of ambiences and contexts,
Taavi Laatsit retains great consistency all the way
through. Juggling between influences while developing
his own themes, he confidently makes the move from purely
ambient electronica to a more substantial form of music,
and, despite a few weak moments on the way, produces
with Constance a rather enduring record.
4.3/5 |
