Like the loop-based soundscapes of the earliest game consoles or the cyclical patterns of courtly dance music, Takeshi's Cashew also build Planet Odyssey 64 around recurring musical figures. It wasn't only 8-bit games that created immersive atmospheres with minimal means—the Vienna-based instrumentalists, too, have deliberately pared down their musical toolkit compared to their previous work.

At its core, this music functions as an apparatus of transcendence. Its video game-inspired melodies become time machines to kinder, brighter worlds. As the battle lines of today's internet continue to harden, the pixelated realms of the 1990s feel like the welcoming playground of an adventure game. Across twelve tracks, Takeshi's Cashew's Cosmofunk unfolds as a space capsule. The moment your fingertips press “Play,” an enchanted teleportation begins. The journey ahead leads through chairlifts and ice palaces. You encounter an armadillo in the desert level. Eventually, your eyes catch the shimmering glow of the Rhinegold.

By the end of this âventiure, listeners have mastered fire, earth, water, and air—and return to themselves transformed, with a renewed sense of joy.

Text: Excerpts from the album review by Martin Schüler

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album artwork: amelie knopper
release show poster: tobias blessing
siluh.records
cargorecordsgermany
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