Swod

Beginning with the repeating piano chords and understated bass riff of "Montauk” and riding into the disembodied voices and gentle timber of acoustic drums in "Ja,” the bittersweet soundscape of Swod mirrors the ice-melting freshness of Scandinavia in spring. Gentle pauses between swelling piano interludes are interjected with distant whirrs and whistles, the warmth building into a cinematic ambiance that instantly captures and maintains a tender, spacious mood. A follow-up to their debut, Gehen, Sekunden continues Swod’s velvety blend of acoustic and digital soundscapes. Embodying a sense of artful longing, Sekunden does occasionally edge into melodramatic theme music. "Belgien” is the clearest example but everything is beautifully redeemed by the constant return to a sparse, gentle, glitch-laced jazz sensibility that renders the gorgeously tender and cool atmospherics.