Premiere: Herrmann Kristoffersen – Vista

“The woods are lovely, dark and deep,” wrote Robert Frost. At the heart of every forest is a darkness that bides its time, a mystery contained within the large expanses of trees and overgrown foliage. After the sun goes down, the dark forest spirit reclaims its turf, rolling out across bracken, bark and brambles towards its indistinct edges as shadowed pines stretch up like arrows into the night sky. The forest after dark can seem an impossibly scary and isolating place, but don’t be afraid. Just wait for the stars and the moonlight to penetrate the canopy and embrace the magic of the moon forest.

The fourth album release from Bytes, and the first for 2020 from the offshoot of Ransom Note Records, is from Herrmann Kristoffersen, the joyous union of the German photographer and musician Daniel "Flug 8" Herrmann and the Danish singer-songwriter and producer Kristina Kristoffersen. Over a long winter the couple found comfort in front of the crackling fire in the living room of their mountain home in Taunus Woods, just outside Frankfurt. The sounds that unfolded there would become their debut album, a stunning collection of gorgeous, meditative ambience and celestial techno. ‘Vista’ falls in both camps, grounding and calming without being typical meditation music. It bides its time before revealing its magic; an extended opening sequence of dubby, melancholic and melodious loops segues into a stunning denouement underpinned by the blown-out sounds of degraded machinery.

The self-titled album is released on cassette and digital on 28 February.

Buy HERE.