Bleep

Four years after 2012’s A Long Year To Fall, German electronic producer Ulrich Schnauss returns with No Further Ahead Than Today on his own Scripted Realities imprint. His fifth studio album sees the Tangerine Dream member revisit his earlier style, bearing resemblance to the emotionally charged sonic anthems of his 2001 debut and its 2003 successor – albums that came to shape his musical signature.

Boosting the treble results in brightly colored songs, adding to their cinematic narratives. The album reserves its own uplifting dynamic, alternating between beat-driven and melody-dominated pieces. The joyful chorus of ‘The Magic In You’ with its voice-turned-synth vocals is propelled by a breakbeat. 'Negative Sunrise' on the other hand layers waves of shifting, glistening synths to evocative effects. No Further Ahead Than Today relates as much to Tycho’s sun-kissed instrumentals as the soundtrack for Netflix’ Stranger Things, with traceable influences from Brian Eno or Boards of Canada. This proves that albeit it’d be easy to cling a sense of nostalgia to the album, Schnauss’ multi-layered synth hymns perfectly comply with the zeitgeist.