Album Review: Nicolas Jaar - Telas

Nicolas Jaar’s sixth studio album is his most avant garde work yet. Traversing the metaphorical realms of time and space through sound, his talent as a producer and composer is unprecedented as he weaves together a nearly-wordless piece of ambient, immersive artwork.

Kicking off the record with nearly dissonant brass and glitchy electronic sounds in ’Telahora’, he builds a world of chaos before tearing it down into minimal drums that once again serve to lead into a new form of life. Classical, eastern-inspired instruments blend with ultra-modern production that conclude with the quiet whispers of ‘Nada lo que veo, nada lo que soy, nada en lo que es ser nada en la nada lo que doy’, the only lyrics within the album, which roughly translate to him embracing the nothingness within himself and that which surrounds him.

The whispers continue within the next track, ‘Telencima’, which further envelops the listener into a futuristic world of twinkling electronic sounds. The minimalism builds to an entrancing, hopeful end before once again traversing the realms of chaos and peace within the more-energetic ‘Telahumo’. A highlight of the four tracks within the record, the song edges on the warm conventions of the future bass genre with expertly composed synth amid the more striking remnants of purposeful feedback.

While his previous record this year, Cenizas, delved into destruction, Telas (translated as ‘Veils’), weaves a new, surreal world that challenges the structure of modern music. Vastly unlike any major release this year, instruments are pushed to their limits as Jaar simultaneously embraces dissonance and harmony within a hauntingly beautiful hour-long journey.

Experience the multimedia Telas website here.