Music News - Julien Dyne Releases Feature-Filled Fifth Album, 'Modes'
03 December 2021 - 0 Comments
Acclaimed New Zealand producer and multi-instrumentalist Julien Dyne has released his fifth solo album, Modes.
Out today on renowned UK label Soundway Records, the record sees Dyne harness the talents of emerging star Semisi Ma'i'ai, longtime collaborators Lord Echo, Ladi6 and Mara TK, and Aotearoa icons Dallas Tamaira AKA Joe Dukie (Fat Freddy’s Drop), Che Fu and Troy Kingi, amongst many others.
Three singles from the album have already been released. The latest, Be Real features vocals by NZ hip hop royalty Ladi6, while The More I Get The Less I Have To Pay and Your Life both showcase the lush crooning of Ma'i'ai, frontman for Dunedin indie act Marlin's Dreaming.
Heavy as it is on the jawdrop local features, Modes casts a wider collaborative net – a trans-Tasman connection utilising some of Melbourne’s best, including bass/production virtuoso Horatio Luna, instrumental cinematic funk architect Lachlan Stuckey (Surprise Chef), future soul queen Allysha Joy, bedroom funk stars Liam McGorry and Nkechi (Ex-Olympian/Saskwatch), and dream folk icon Tim Guy.
And that’s not the half of it. Modes features an incredible line-up of instrumentalists from around Aotearoa, and the world.
As a whole, the record continues the forward-thinking percussive jazz and afro-inspired house music soundscapes explored on Dyne's 2018 album Teal, which garnered acclaim from peers and fans alike – including Late Night Tales, Toddla T, Ransom Note, and BBC6 Music.
On Modes, his trademark production mastery can be relied upon once more, as well as his music's insistent rhythmic drive and intensity.
Says Dyne of the album, “The majority of this record was created during the first lockdown of 2020. I was fortunate enough to receive funding from Creative New Zealand, which enabled me to focus on this project while the world was shutting down. Lots of files were shared via the internet, which made for an interesting collaborative process – little parcels of sonic information which were then shaped and sculpted afterwards, yelding fresh results.”
The artist has a long and impressive history of collaborative, live, and solo musicianship. Best known for his solo work on BBE Records, he’s also worked with the likes of Theo Parrish, Steve Spacek, and Andreya Triana along the way.
Having also remixed the likes of Marcel Vogel, Ghostwave and Leroy Burgess (alongside Frank Booker), Dyne has accumulated a number of accolades over the course of his career, including being hotly tipped by the likes of Moodymann and Gilles Peterson.
Here’s what some of his Modes collaborators have to say:
“I’ve been a great admirer of Julien’s mahi for a while – his drum tone and feel are unparalleled. Was an honour to be a small part of his latest offering.” – Troy Kingi
“Working with Julien is always a natural process, we've made three songs together over the course of his solo career and the collaboration has always been fluid and easy. He's a great friend and a progressive, exciting musician and artist. I'm always very proud of the work we do together.” – Ladi6
Dyne's employer via Avantdale Bowling Club, frontman Tom Scott, also offers his blessing:
“Julien is mortal drum god. I seen him play 5-17 timing immaculately half-asleep off a half a bottle of Hennessy. His gift is that he can sprinkle the perfect dose of jazz school into the dancefloor without killing the party. He's an adult student. He's put in his 10,000 hours and is still committed to his studies – his music is like the thesis written from his research. It's like you're hearing his whole record collection assembled together into some kind of gumbo. You could pull out stems from one of the songs and compare them and they might be totally different genres from each other, but that's what makes them harmonise. He makes hybrids. But I don't mean Yaris's. More like solar-powered Eldorados.”
Photo Credit: Harlin Davey
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