Baldocaster/Traveler CS : Exodus/Solare Split EP

In these tumultuous times I find music is the saving grace. A place to get lost in and a place to heal those psychic wounds. Of course it’s a temporary reprieve, but in these caustic days even a temporary locale to let your guard down is welcome.

I’m finding that electronic music has been my go-to place to calm the nerves, whether it be Berlin School and Komische, or more movement and rhythm-oriented work. The synthetic pulse has been a centering tool for these last few months, thru a decades-old Tangerine Dream or Jean Michel Jarre LP or the gorgeously heady Portals compilation(Behind The Sky) from this past summer.

Those cats at Burning Witches Records have been doing their best to keep us centered in this trying year, and their newest release is a heady slice of deep synth. The Exodus/Solare Split EP from Baldocaster and Traveler CS balances the space between cosmic synth and more movement-oriented electronic. It’s two different sides to the same coin, one which will buy you some much-needed escape.

Here’s what BWR has to say about the split:

Exodus – A collaborative cinematic concept EP with washes of Tangerine Dream and Jean-Michel Jarre influences. Vintage hardware blasts spacey synth sounds with some beautiful melodic grounding.

Solare – A more beat driven Berlin school EP from Baldocaster. Loosely conceptualized around Galileo and his discoveries. Otherworldly synth escapism at its finest.

With the Exodus side you get some serious Froese vibes, more so in Tangerine Dream’s excellent film work. “Genesis” locks into Thief and Firestarter sonic complexities; big, bold, and wonderfully melodic. “Runner” is subtle, complex, and floats along on a neon sheen. It’s slick and propulsive. “Embrace” puts me in mind of contemporaries like Rival Consoles and Huerco S. A mixture of ambient vibes and emotional heft.

Solare feels like walking thru hollowed halls on some far off planet. Like ancient Rome stranded on the surface of Mars. “Galileo” is all gauzy synth that becomes swaths of bright, almost early 80s techno vibes. It’s a fantastic switch of gears, not jarring but definitely head-turning. “Motion” has a Harold Faltermeyer vibe that takes us into the two part “Maps to the Stars”. Part I is contemplative and driving, with elements of 80s synth scores(think John Harrison’s Day of the Dead) with a techno backbone. Part II closes it out on a more melancholy note, but equally engaging and mysterious.

This Baldocaster/Traveler CS split is the perfect way to set your mind right when it’s feeling a little disoriented. Gorgeous, heady synth to finish the year out with.

7.9 out of 10

Baldocaster and Traveler CS’ ‘Exodus/Solare Split EP’ is available now. Buy it from Burning Witches Records here.