(OFFLINE) ***LOW STOCK***

A Side:

Thème de la couleur de la mer
L'eau
Jeanne et Alain
Quelque chose reste
Le motard
L'eau (Reprise)
La mission commence

B Side:

Cap Camarat
Un bout de chemin
No. 33
Sous-marin
La couleur de la mer
Enfin, la paix

Following his debut EP ‘En clair-obscur’ and a series of singles earlier this year cementing his place as a rising voice in the world of cinematic soul & funk, Hamburg’s finest cinematic soul artist ‘The Offline’ announces his debut album 'La couleur de la mer'.

Reminiscent of film scores from the 60s and 70s, The Offline worked with co-producer Tim Liztenberger to channel the influence of film composers such as Francois de Roubaix and Brian Bennet, creating his own soundtrack on ‘La couleur de la mer’. Inducing images of manorial, fog-swept villas at the sea's edge, silhouetted sailing boats and cigar-chomping villains attempting to thwart the mission of an imaginary hero, the record is a masterfully composed sonic journey. Experimenting with themes and atypical song structures, the music moves from dramatic cues to fragile romanticism. It incorporates psychedelic spaciness, retro soul and hip-hop sensibilities informed by The Offline’s extensive record collection and crate-digger status.

“Ever since I was a child, I was fascinated by the soundtracks from the 60s and 70s, and I always wanted to make an album in the film score direction. I wrote about 30 demos, kicked half of it and stuck to the ones that felt right in the dramaturgical structure of the ‘movie'. Interestingly the main theme was set really early on while writing the album, which made the writing process much easier.”

Aptly named, ‘Thème de la couleur de la mer’ opens proceedings, establishing the core motifs of the record. Haunting flutes and xylophones lead the way into Khruangbin-esque guitar lines, which sit against a hip-hop canvas that returns on boom-bap head boppers like ‘Quelque chose reste’. Retro soul revival takes precedence on deep cuts like ‘Un bout de chemin’, with wah-gated guitars interacting with emotive cello lines and symphonic string & horn sections.

The Offline came to life when composer and photographer Felix Müller travelled the Atlantic coastline in the south of France with his analogue camera, capturing beach life on film. After coming back to Hamburg, he started writing songs as the sonic counterpart to the analogue visuals. His Debut EP ‘En Clair-Obscur’ includes five tracks that capture the essence of his journey and the feeling of a cool summer soundtrack.

Produced by The Offline
Co-Producer - Timor Litzenberger
Composer - Felix Müller

Chris Hill - Drums, Percussion
Carl Michael Grabinger - Drums, Percussion
Sebastian Schütze - Bass
Elvis Ellington - Xylophone
Felix Müller - Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Mellotron, Piano, Moog, Synths, Percussion
Felix Behrendt - Wurlitzer, Rhodes, Piano, Hammond B3, Vibraphone, Prophet
Hans-Christian Stephan - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Kimo Eiserbeck - Sax, Bariton Sax, Flute, Composer
Adam Zolynski - 1st Violin
Mona Burger - 2nd Violin
Jansen Folkers - 2nd Violin
Ingmar Süberkrüb - Viola
Martin Bentz - Cello

Recorded at The Tracking Farm, Grabis Studio, Le Schrank, Bastis Studio, Timors Studio @Not A Machine Hamburg, Monopalast, nhb studios, Hush Hush, 106Hz Studios.
Recording Engineers - Chris Hill, Carl Michael Grabinger, Sebastian Schütze, Timor Litzenberger, Markus Roseneck, Fabian Niehaus, Felix Müller.
Mixed at Le Schrank
Mixing Engineer - Felix Müller
Mastered at nhb studios
Mastering Engineer - Kai Beisner

Released on DeepMatter & Root Records
Vinyl Artwork - Liam Kay
Photography - Felix Müller