New Tycho album ‘Epoch’
I’ve discovered Scott Hansen as a graphic designer before I got to know about his music path as Tycho. I’ve always admired the simplicity in his work as a designer. He doesn’t do much design anymore except for his album art & T-shirts. It’s almost always something that I want to add to my inspiration stream.
Epoch
I’ve written about the importance of music in my work as a graphic designer in the past and Tycho plays a role in that. This fourth studio album ‘Epoch’ is a follow up to 2014’s ‘Awake’ and it also marks the tenth anniversary of the group’s debut as Scott points out in a Facebook post:
I’m very pleased to announce the release of the fourth full length Tycho album, Epoch. 10 years ago next month the first Tycho record, Past is Prologue, was released and it’s been an incredible journey. There’s nothing I could possibly say to fully express my deep gratitude to all of you for making this past decade possible. I truly hope you enjoy this music and make it your own.
We finished the album less than a month ago and decided to forego the typical release schedule and just put the record out as soon as possible. We’re all very excited for you to be able to hear it so soon after it was completed.
Only a few days ago I tweeted that I was looking forward to the album after listening to the single ‘Epoch’ quite a few times. I was kinda surprised to see it so quickly being released. I like Scott’s thinking about not holding it back.
I’ve never been fond of handing in an album then waiting 4 months for it to be released. I wanted to be more connected to the people consuming the music. There is a kind of visceral fulfilment you get from sharing something that you’ve just created with other people. That’s a very satisfying feeling as an artist.
I’ve only listened to the album once but I already know that it will be a regular when I’m on an inspiration hunt. It’s the kind of album to get your noice canceling headset on and escape into his dreamy world. You don’t have to take my word for it just have a listen yourself.
I bought my copy on iTunes but it’s also available on these services too.
About the artwork
As I mentioned before Scott worked as a graphic designer for 14 years before pursuing music full time. The artwork of Tycho has always been an important part of it all. Be sure to go read Scott’s article where he explains the meaning and origin of the artwork. A must read imho. Here’s a little excerpt.
The sun disc, both literally and as an icon, has always been at the center of the artwork. From Sunrise Projector and on I’ve used the sun and circle as a metaphor for life; the sun being the life giver and the circle symbolizing the closed loop, the interconnectedness of the human experience with the physical world. I think the imagery tells a story that the music can’t fully articulate, and vice versa.
