JACOB FAURHOLT - Chaotic Piano
It’s been a whole year since the last album by Danish lo-fi musician Jacob Faurholt, but he’s back now with his new EP Chaotic Piano. My first impression was that he sounds this time even more lo-fi than before, as there are a lot of environment noises and especially tape hiss to be heard all over the place. The mystery was soon revealed: Chaotic Piano consists of lo-fi recordings made between 2004 and 2006, which can be considered a period early in Faurholt’s career.
The official verdict is: the songs have passed the test of time incredibly well, showing that Jacob Faurholt’s been an incredible songwriter from the start. The opener and title track, despite its typical melancholic atmosphere, is a jangly piece of lo-fi pop with a totally catchy chorus. Finest Of Moments has a more positive sounding title than the actual song actually does. This is your trademark J.F. that will pleasantly bring you down. As The Ship Came In is the EP’s first single and also its highlight. He’s accompanied by two of his former bandmates from Sweetie Pie Wilbur, making this an unforgettable lo-fi indie pop hit with an incredibly memorable chorus. Two Months, Or Forever is another dark and bleak piece where the vocal antics are quite remarkable: lots of squealing and moaning that not every singer can pull off. More downcast stuff comes with Cross That Line, maybe the only not so great track here, before the EP ends with We Got Lucky In Berlin with its waltzy melody.
I guess even a Jacob Faurholt, usually known for his busy release schedule, has the right to not release any new music for a whole year. Instead he treats us with rare lo-fi recordings from over fifteen years ago that have been remixed to take the most out of them. If you like Jacob Faurholt’s fragile take on lo-fi indie folk pop, you should also be interested in these old but still very appealing songs.