It’s been much too quiet on The Avalanches front. That’s all changed with “Together” (via Modular Recordings) featuring Nikki Nair, Jessy Lanza, Prentiss, the first new release from the Australian electronic act in almost six years.
If you’re looking for introspective, minimal electronica, or memories of Motown, cut ‘n’ pasted into a patchwork, then you’re come to the wrong place. “Together” is forward looking, dancefloor beckoning, and has more bounce than the vertical leap test at the NBA Draft Combine.
The Avalanches, now comprising Robbie Chater, Tony Di Blasi and Andy Szekeres, changed the game with their debut 2000 album release Since I Left You.
Its secret sauce, slivers of hundreds of songs from the likes of Françoise Hardy, Sérgio Mendes, Raekwon, Wayne and Shuster, and even Madonna, painstakingly, surgically sewed into songs. The result, which included the title track and “Frontier Psychiatrist,” was a collection that was both timeless, and immediate. Or, as a statement from the band’s reps suggests, “a global footprint for collaborative sampology in the 21st century.”
Its followup was a long time coming, and it wasn’t a repeat. Sixteen years passed when The Avalanches finally dropped Wildflower, which immediately went to No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart. A third album travelled at comparative warp-speed, We Will Always Love You, which dropped in 2020 and later scooped the coveted Australian Music Prize, for the best album of the year.
In 2024, the band briefly returned with a collaboration on Jamie XX’s In Waves, with the tune “All You Children.”
“Together” may well be the starting point for another, proper release cycle. The release is part of a “Superfun” campaign, which includes an image of Chater gaming, and an official animated video for “Together,” with sees some old school hardware — an iPod and a diskette (the compact version of the floppy disk) — sprout arms, and legs, and get about their bright, happy day. Together.
The positively ancient Nokia 3310 device makes an appearance, descending from the heavens with its angel wings.
“How are you looking after your memories? At Takumi digital archives your most treasured moments are safe with us,” reads a cryptic official statement. You can even “visit Takumi today” at the website takumiarchives.com.
Jonathan Zawada directed and animated the music video, which can be streamed below.
