Expanding from glistening subtleties into a trickling expanse of atmospheric synths, intense rhythms, and brassy swells, “Mirror” is a gripping new single from London-based artist Vinter, the project of Oscar Vinter. The instrumental single converges a dance-friendly immediacy with an intriguing textural escalation, with influences including Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and the films of Tarkovsky.
“One stormy night in winter 2016, I watched Andrei Tarkovsky’s Mirror and was totally overcome by the time it finished,” Vinter explains. “It has remained my favourite film ever since. Straight after watching it for the first time, I wrote the first iteration of ‘Mirror’, a slow yet triumphant reflection on memory and childhood. Over the years the song slowly evolved into what I like to call a minimalist pop song with the same melodies and parts, but with more grooves, more cowbell and a bossa-nova like feel.”
A majestic spaciousness is initially conveyed, resembling a warming-up futuristic orchestra. An enthused percussive punch coincides with spacey synths and a xylophone-like trickling, joined thereafter by enveloping brassy adornments. The one-minute turn sees these elements converge for a bursting resonance, the culmination reminding of Oneohtrix Point Never’s vast atmospheric strengths. A heady, buzzing vigor takes hold into the final seconds, concluding with a graceful twinkling. “Mirror” is a thoroughly compelling showing from Vinter.
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This and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Best of September 2023’ Spotify playlist.
We discovered this release via MusoSoup, as part of the artist’s promotional campaign.
