Under the moniker of Pulse Emitter, Daryl Groetsch’s work with the synthesizer has embraced melodic synth music, organic ambient, relaxation, microtonal, and noise/drone, and while the most recent Pulse Emitter album, Dusk (2022), encompassed most of these subgenres, his new one, Tide Pools, is more of the same. Which is good news, because Groetsch absolutely excels at creating synth soundscapes that sound mind-bendingly wild, are massively melodic, and demand repeated listens.
Leaping out of the gate with the frantic, jittery “Energy Flying”, Groetsch immediately creates an atmosphere of futuristic hope. Things slow down on the more ruminative “So Many Leaves”, but none of the sleek sophistication or generally upbeat vibes are compromised. Despite the songs all seeming to embrace the same positive headspace, there’s plenty of variety and individuality. “Chip Stacking” is positively playful: crystal clear melody lines that are rich and irresistible, often coming off as a soundtrack to the world’s most advanced video game.
There are moments on Tide Pools that sound gracefully unmoored, such as on the lush, ethereal “Jellyfish and Friends”, which includes fretless bass soundalike patches that nudge the song into new age jazz territory. Meanwhile, songs like “Critters” and “Fronds” take cues from more experimental electronic avenues, with gurgling sounds and slashes of distorted clips that would sound at home on Orange Milk Records.
However, much of Tide Pools consists of neat, orderly lines that pleasantly surprise with unusual sound combinations that ultimately sound warm and inviting: “Early Motion”, “In a Circuit”, and the twin title tracks (“Tide Pool 1” and “Tide Pool 2”) are playfully adventurous, like bright, buzzy ear candy that won’t rot out your teeth.
Tide Pools is the fourth Pulse Emitter release on Chicago’s Hausu Mountain label (in addition to Dusk, Swirlings, and his collaboration with Brett Naucke, Mugen: Volume 9), and while it largely falls along the lines of that imprint’s dedication to bold individuality, Daryl Groetsch goes a step further by creating musical worlds that are always filled with a sense of optimism alongside a bold artistic spirit.