BEN LUKAS BOYSEN – Alta Ripa – LP – Clear Vinyl

LP – Indies Exclusive Limited Edition Translucent Vinyl.

Ben Lukas Boysens new album, Alta Ripa, signifies a seismic shift in his artistic journey. It revisits the foundational impulses of his youth, shaped amidst the serene beauty of rural Germanya bucolic backdrop where his creative palette flourished. However, it was his move to Berlin in the early 2000s that electrified his sound, infusing it with the citys pulsating energy and diverse cultural influences. Alta Ripa captures this transformative experience, blending the introspective melodies of his rural beginnings with the bold, experimental tones born from Berlins vibrant electronic music scene. This album is a testament to Boysens evolution, showcasing how geographical shifts can profoundly shape artistic expression.

Boysens fourth studio album under his own name, Alta Ripa is a nod to his beginnings as much as a hint to his future, and as a work, its almost contradictory in its boldness and humility. He invites the listener on a journey of self-discovery; both for himself and for them, describing the music as something the 15-year-old in me would have liked to hear but only the grown-up version of myself can write.

His last two albums involved working closely with other musicians, including cellist Anne Mller, flugelhorn player Steffen Zimmer, and drummer Achim Frber. However, inspired in part by a recent return to live performance, Alta Ripa sees Boysen circling back to his passion for pure computer music.

For Boysen, the return to his youthful musical language marks a major turning point in his career. It represents a departure from his roots in classical music his mother was an opera singer and his father an actor with an appreciation for Wagner, Arvo Prt, Keith Jarrett, and Stockhausen. Although these are still important influences, Alta Ripa encapsulates a new, exploratory interplay between Boysens careful craft and his ability to let go of some of the process.

The albums title comes from the original Roman name of the town that Boysen grew up in, Altrip, where he lived until his early twenties. This formative period is central to the ideas behind this album, from Boysens parental schooling in classical music through to his sonic journeys through drum and bass, Aphex Twin, and Autechre all of which changed his idea of what music could be. The extreme energy of tracks like Acperience 1 by Hardfloor, Tracks & Fragment by Cari Lekebusch, Focus2 Implan by Jiri.Ceiver, and Low On Ice by Alec Empire are also pivotal influences.

For Boysen, this time of his musical development also involved knocking down the pillars that he previously thought had carried his world. A key moment for Boysen was being given a precious (pre-internet) club cassette at school that featured artists like Source Direct, Photek and Goldie. Excited by this new discovery, he introduced his father to the song Dred Bass by Dead Dred. After the song finished, Boysen Sr. turned off the tape and proclaimed it was the end of all music. This heated exchange sparked a new, and more mature dialogue between the two that involved them sharing and discussing music on a regular basis.

Boysens classical and jazz music upbringing might not be easily noticeable from the electronic palette that he uses. But it can be found in its bones; the structure of the tracks and their dynamic shifts. On Alta Ripa, he intentionally embraces a spirit of controlled chaos, churning out sonic ideas to see what sticks.

One of Brian Enos Oblique Strategy cards contains the phrase gardening, not architecture, and the trajectory of Boysens creative path reflects this metaphor. In much of his previous work he followed a sort of Brutalist architects approach; here, he was fully responsible for the tracks austere structures and planned them with deliberate care. But by sacrificing some of that control on Alta Ripa, he sets the right conditions for a dark and unpredictable, organic growth. Its a push forward into a new world.

Tracklist:

1. Ours
2. Mass
3. Quasar
4. Alta Ripa
5. Nox
6. Vineta
7. Fama
8. Mere