Ulla & Perila’s newly formed Log duo arrives on Experiences Ltd with a sublime full-length suite of dubbed-out, warm and fizzing energies, reminding us of Vainqueur’s classic Elevation productions for Chain Reaction, and the most dense, tranquil moments from Wolfgang Voigt’s GAS excursions. Ulla and Perila have each supplied us with some of the most rinsed and satisfying records of the year, this one might just be the best of the lot.
‘LOG ET3RNAL’ sees the pair building on a blossoming creative synergy formed over 2020 lockdown, which resulted in a pair of low-key trips for Portugal’s silence box, and now this full suite of peaceful gestures inspired by rambles in the forest. An obvious reference point is Wolfgang Voigt’s GAS recordings transmuting the feel of the Black Forest into ambient gold, but Ulla & Perila’s take on this timeless notion is detectably more fractured and frayed, textured like fruiting brambles that gently snag the ankles, and decayed with a beautifully deciduous tone ripened for autumnal immersion.
Weaving synthetic micro-fibres and burnished pads into 11 gauzy visions, they coax a palette of iridescent melodies, ephemeral vocals and organic rhythms into scenes that suggest a sort of sleepwalking sojourn into the woods, or a simulacra thereof. Their patient approach is enchanting, allowing their synthesised, micro-fibrous forms to naturally grow and sprawl, but with careful hands pruning the results into bonsai-like vignettes that absorb listeners into swirling dioramas of the real thing, bringing the outdoors inside.