Martin Schiller traverses time and space to jam with himself on his psychedelic new post-rocker Future Prints — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Taken from his LP Dreams Vol. 1, the track finds the Canadian multi-instrumentalist whisking listeners on a sonic journey through space and time with an instrumental post-rock opus reminiscent of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Ali Shaheed Muhammed and something entirely new.
The textured sound of Future Prints is best described by Schiller himself as “somewhere between Chicago post-rock (Tortoise), Ethiopian jazz (Mulatu Astatke), and 1970s Japanese surf-rock (Takeshi Terauchi).” Schiller’s visceral percussion and guitar work are seamlessly interwoven with heart-pumping saxophone riffs provided by Theodore Hogan, the only guest instrumentalist on the album.
Although it has no trouble standing on its own, Future Prints was initially crafted to serve another purpose. “Back in 2019, I contributed some musical ideas to an internet sketch comedy series my brother Eric was working on, and this idea was used as the theme music,” he shares.
With the world still reeling from the Covid-19, Dreams Vol. 1 is meant to act as a soundtrack to Schiller’s emotional experiences during the first year and a half of the pandemic — which is also when his wife Amanda Brierty inked the cover art concept. “It begins with a foreboding sound with doom and worry, then a feeling of urgency, giving way to a feeling of appreciation of some positivity, eventually being able to live in the moment,” says Schiller.
The recording process initially started with a series of drum sessions that would provide the rhythmic foundation for the album. With the exception of the sensational saxophone on Future Prints, the entirety of the album was recorded in Schiller’s basement and bedroom studio. Dreams Vol. 1 was also mixed by Schiller, who employed sound engineer Matt Rideout to master the album and elevate the production.
Hailing from Windsor, Schiller has been on the Canadian post-rock scene for some time. He has performed throughout Canada and abroad as the bassist of bands such as What Seas, What Shores and multimedia performance group Noiseborder Ensemble. He also leads instrumental post-rock outfit The Greedy Echoes.
Check out Future Prints above, and listen to Dreams Vol. 1 below.
