Grandbrothers - Elsewhere

A Closer Listen

When your musical identity changes, are you still you?  This is the question faced by Erol Sarp and Lukas Vogel, whose first ten years of recording as Grandbrothers were marked by a singular approach: every sound in their music, direct or indirect, came from a grand piano.

“We Collide,” the first single of their transitional period, sounds less like a shift than an evolution.  Amassing a collection of vintage analog synths and drum samples, the duo decided it was time for a change.  Thankfully, live audiences responded well to the new sound, from the opening beats (yes, that is a drum!) to the euphoric, club-centered sound.  The piano is still there, quickly introduced, but no longer stretched to the limit.  If an instrument could exude feelings, one might even say that it sounds relaxed, even a bit relieved.  The synths swirl around the ivory notes, happy to accompany their previously-overworked friend.  The first breakdown references classic trance, the second Ibiza ambient; Grandbrothers have traveled elsewhere and survived.  Is it pure coincidence that the title of the second single, “Fable,” is also that of a classic Robert Miles track?

There’s plenty to love here; the album has a wonderful flow, smooth around the edges from start to finish.  The duo seems liberated by their removal of self-imposed restraints.  The early percussion of “Where Else” sounds like classic Grandbrothers, less like drums than the innards of a piano.  The popcorn synth that materializes two-thirds into the piece makes it our choice for the next single. As clubgoers become friends with these tracks, we expect some remixes, adding bass and lengthening the already-appealing breakdowns.  “run, run, run, run, run,” in both title and timbre, seems tailor-made to be trailer music.  The sky’s the limit for this new incarnation.  In Elsewhere, Grandbrothers may have lost their novelty, but they have also expanded their career.  (Richard Allen)