Weval - Weval (2LP) [Kompakt]

--> Format: 2x12" + Gatefold + MP3 download code.

When Kompakt first met Amsterdamers Harm Coolen and Merijn Schotte Albers, known as WEVAL, in 2014, we were surprised to hear their emotion-laden and dark, slow-burning tunes. Their debut EP “Half Age” on Atomnation featured surprisingly kinetic, yet painfully intimate chamber electronic pop, which convinced us they were the perfect match to become part of the Kompakt family. After two critically acclaimed EPs for Kompakt and having played various festivals like DGTL, Reeperbahn, Iceland Airwaves and Piknic Electronik, we now see the two facing their first full length, simply titled WEVAL. What you have in front of you is not just a collection of songs, but a full listening experience, with an organic flow, an emotional charge and a narrative thread.

Enamored with WEVAL's unique and personal approach to crafting murky electronic music, we were quickly won over… and so came the hotly tipped label debut EP EASIER (KOMPAKT 318), followed by 2015's bold and beautiful offering IT'LL BE JUST FINE / GROW UP (KOMPAKT 344), with the two producers diving deeper into the nuances of electronic funk than ever before. Yet, Harm and Merijn's music - while astonishingly mature even in its early stages - always seemed destined for something bigger, a larger format, more room to explore all corners of their constantly evolving sonic cosmos. Simply put, they needed to think album and their beloved living room studio wasn't enough anymore.

A former school building became WEVAL's new home, reconfigured to house small creative businesses, but in the summer of 2015, it was mostly unoccupied, with everyone outside enjoying the sun, while our heroes converted the building's attic into a perfect spot to make noise, have 24-hour access and lose track of time. And apart from a troublesome tenant being evicted, the occasional football game with friends and live gigs across Europe, there were no interruptions to the focused vibe. Not that they were looking for distractions anyway: "working on the album alone in this damn hot attic was all we had on our mind," the artists admit. And they decided that their album shouldn't sound too clean: "We try to find the beauty in imperfection. It makes things sound more human."

Weval draws inspiration not from one musical genre, but from an accumulation of music that inspires them. The result presents a surprisingly coherent vision: cuts like the dramatic THE BATTLE, the bass-heavy roar I DON'T NEED IT or the epic journey MADNESS all share the same DNA of vibrant nostalgia, a knack for enveloping soundscapes and that particular essence in rhythm. They also feed off deeply personal experiences and moods, as exemplified by the haunting electronica ballad YOU'RE MINE, the carefully layered, polaroid-tinged JUST IN CASE, or the beautifully vocalized, winding-down closer YEARS TO BUILD. And sometimes, it's just an old, out-of-tune piano standing in the hallway: "Every time I passed it, I couldn't resist playing it," Merijn says, "so Harm decided to start recording it and it became an integral part of YOU MADE IT (PART I)." Make no mistake: this is WEVAL's most powerful and organic material to date, which is saying something, considering the skill already exhibited on their small but stout portfolio.