Based in Berlin since 2015, ex-Liars member Aaron Hemphill, operating under Nonpareils, started working on his solo debut Scented Pictures by recording stacks of acoustic instruments while, in his words, “doing the silliest things.”
He played the drums without click tracks, encouraged his engineer to distract him, and played the piano while allowing poorly set-up microphones to fall away from the body of the instrument.
Ultimately the sound palette grew out further, taking in a vast array of virtual instrumentation too, all glitched and processed into off-kilter music. Having sought out new sources of inspiration following a long period of focusing solely on instrumental music, Scented Pictures sees Hemphill’s songwriting take on yet another new form, mutating into something woozier and increasingly abstract—without sacrificing the hooks in the process.
Scented Pictures arrives in stores today via Mute Records.
