Ulrich Schnauss has never been afraid to embrace the new age side of his sound. Even on albums like 2007's
Goodbye, where he went almost full-on shoegaze with plenty of guitars, the softness to the synth textures and gentle touch to the melodies were always soothing, to say the least. On his 2013 album,
A Long Way to Fall,
Schnauss has fully embraced the new age aesthetic and the perfectly manicured, synth-heavy sound is buffed to a gleaming shine. The restrained tempos and smooth arrangements make for pleasant music to have on while you are whiling away the afternoon in a cubicle or curled up in bed. ~ Tim Sendra