Tales from the Flowers is a breathtaking dynamic record and in many ways feels like the sonic experience that Biosphere was trying to encapsulate throughout his entire career up to this point. The grandiose song titles and ambitious technical trials throughout past releases are fully realized and threshed out on this latest record. In many ways it is a breath of fresh air to finally hear the composer's abilities firing on all cylinders; coming into full bloom through the use of classically-inspired instrumentation and song structure.
On the track ‘Mel's Theme’, Ibrahim and Biosphere's prowess of music theory and use of carefully selected notes allow the music to explore areas outside of tonality. At multiple times breaking from the norm of the pentatonic scale, not only in this song but many instances throughout the record, Biosphere and company create a wispy and ethereal sonic experience that could be rivaled by that only of famed impressionist composer Debussy or modern Studio Ghibli-affiliated legend Joe Hisaishi. The decision to completely abandon the realm of lofi-hip-hop sensibilities and instead embrace the more nuanced and varied technicalities of Biosphere's past work was no doubt bold, but also tastefully executed. Despite Tales from the Flowers being a complete departure from the previous sound, the songs, or rather pieces, on this record still sound as though they were written by Biosphere which is in no doubt the telltale sign of the progression of a true artist's work.
Although carrying the same tone throughout each song, the work as a whole at no point becomes a slow burn. Each track is intricately crafted with its own idealistic tendencies that help set them apart from one another, while all the same giving the listener a well-groomed and wholistic variety of songs. Whether Biosphere's fans will be phased by this new sound or not will be answered in time, but from an avid music-listener's point of view, this is certainly a step in the right direction that will grant a plethora of new opportunity for the lofi-hip-hop producer gone impressionist composer. Tales from the Flowers is the beginning of a new era, and perhaps the first step into a world full of unbridled potential for Biosphere.
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