As a recent Red Bull Music Academy alum and an accomplished keyboardist from the Netherlands, Niels Broos has worked with a level of tenacity and openness that’s created many fruitful opportunities. This holds true yet again in 2017, signing with Los Angeles based indie label Alpha Pup Records for the release of the Niels Broos EP. Scheduled to drop on digital platforms February 24, 2017, the new album serves as his first solo title and collects music recorded over the last two years. The writing process initiated in the beginning of 2015 after relocating to the city of Utrecht, serving as the score to a transitional and important time of his life. He also brought along Brainfeeder’s Jameszoo for these recordings, adding to the body of work they laid out on Jameszoo’s debut album Fool.
The Niels Broos EP is made of four intricately constructed voyages into the electronic spectrum, pushing experimental boundaries with taste and beauty intact. The entire works sprawl with an endless array of sound to process in both harmonic and rhythmic terms, hinting towards many roads of the past, present and future. Sheets of colorfully drawn out synths are found in every seam possible, showcasing how detail oriented he is as a songwriter. There’s something new to find on every spin, suitable for the headphone experience to unleash the full range of layering within.
When analyzing the creative and technical aspects of the Niels Broos EP, one has to take a step back and understand his past and upbringing. Harnessing his skills on the keys since the age of four and wrapping his mind around the canon of jazz legends such as Miles Davis and John Coltrane, innovators of this era such as Dorian Concept, Dimlite and Flying Lotus also became an important component to his self discovery as a musician. Add in a deep understanding of music theory and the art of improvisation, he’s able to traverse into the fullest language of his instruments capabilities. Even when Niels’ sound stretches to textures of the beyond, he’s still able to latch onto forward progression and balanced spacing.
Niels Broos is beginning to carve out a chunk of space in the non-mainstream arenas of music culture found within the Netherlands, carrying the torch with artists such as Jameszoo, The Kyteman Orchestra and Arts The Beatdoctor. Now it’s his time to fully shine with the initiation of his own solo content and the Niels Broos EP is a breathtaking launch in that name.
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jameszoo is a wizard himself, but with a big enough orchestra his music sounds even wider. crazy how organically electronic synths and orchestra interact. i'm loving this album! stekbeats
Pierre Bastien & Michel Banabila join forces on this riveting electroacoustic record at the intersection of jazz & ambient. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 4, 2023