Release date: October 6, 2023
Berlin-based Polish singer, pianist, and composer is back with his magical voice to elevate ambient and classical electronic music to a higher level. In this album, well-known names such as Patrick Watson, Ólafur Arnalds, and Duncan Bellamy from Portico Quartet are present. A collection inspired by Rani‘s two-month stay in a small studio in the heart of the Swiss mountains, making the soundtrack for the documentary film “About Giacometti,” which was made about the famous Swiss artist. The album is very long and diverse, and the prominent role of the synthesizer in advancing the pieces is the most significant difference from Rani’s other works. Several tracks of the album were made using Prophet ’08 only.
Obviously, modern classical influences, particularly Nils Frahm, have always been evident throughout Rani’s work, but on Ghosts, you can see the influence that artists like PJ Harvey and Radiohead had on Rani. This does not mean that he took off the neoclassical mantle; on the contrary, these roots are deeply embedded and spread throughout this album. In fact, several of the thirteen tracks on Ghosts tread the same path as Rani’s previous work and are a home run for him. The most stunning example is the album’s closing track, “Nostalgia,” with just a piano that picks up the most luxurious patterns as it plays. If you listen carefully, you can recognize the workings of the instrument’s internal components and hear the hissing and clicking inside. Nostalgia’s Eric Satie mood matches The Boat’s persistent hypnosis, one of the longer tracks on the album, which belongs to its silent half. While the simple and short motifs of “Whispering House’s” vocals, formed from the collaboration with the great name of this genre, Ólafur Arnalds, have a soothing beauty and fill the void of the presence of other instruments with multiple layers.
When it comes to the voice (vocals), the voice is just another tool with the same manipulation and processing capabilities as usual. The same approach that Thom Yorke has in dealing with sound. That is, he does not want his singing to be clearly understood, but he wants his voice to be considered as an instrument. Not that it’s hidden behind the music; it just makes the sound a little more hidden by using delay and reverb. Rani likes this approach, and since she has a high and thin voice, she often adds twisted octaves to create an androgynous alter ego of herself. Tracks like “Don’t Break My Heart” or “Utrata” almost have a singer-songwriter structure, but in “Thin Line,” Hania’s voice is more of a background and is used as a rhythmic instrument. In “Hello,” the whole rhythm of the song is formed based on “Daily Sound” and is used as the driving force of the work. Without the “Daily Effect,” we would have played a different song.
One of the album’s four singles, and perhaps the most important of them, “Dancing With Ghosts,” featuring Canadian singer-songwriter Patrick Watson, shows the clearest signs of Rani’s attempt to approach the standards of popular music. Dream-pop that follows the thematic idea of the album. Since this album was recorded in different places and with different people, the world experiences a different structure. Some pieces are single-take. For example, “24.03” was performed and recorded in one session with only one synthesizer.
To better understand the general idea of the album and why the name “Ghosts” was chosen for this collection, we refer to the artist’s own words. “For me, Ghosts has become a personal image that is difficult to define. I decided to sing because after going on tour last year I felt good about my voice and suddenly I felt like I had a lot to say, so it was time to write lyrics. Poems related to life and death.” “Ghosts are always associated with stories or myths, and it all seems to fit with the music I write.”
