First things first: This album is as good as any modern classical release I?ve heard this year. ?Float? is the debut full-length by young Oregonian Peter Broderick after last year?s ?Docile? ep on Kning Disks and a 7 inch on Type. And while ?Docile? was a remarkable show of talent, Broderick?s new pieces are a major step forward. In fact, I would argue that Broderick?s name deserves to be mentioned among the best modern classical musicians currently active in the electronic music scene.

For Broderick has widened his focus significantly, creating not only intimate miniatures but also atmospheric grandeur in compositions like the album?s centrepiece ?Stopping On The Broadway Bridge?. That track clocks in at around 7.30 minutes (whereas the longest track on the debut was 3:48) and adds uncanny droning to Broderick?s signature piano minimalism. But that?s not all ? over some 45 minutes Broderick also uses violin, banjo, drums, cello and guitar. He even sings, beautifully, in a melancholic dirge on ?Another Glacier?. It doesn?t come as a surprise, then, that tracks like ?A Beginning? are densely textured and find a stunning balance between the meticulous piano work of Goldmund and the cinematic width of recent Miasmah releases. Elsewhere, ?Float? doesn?t shy away from indie pop parts, but only to drench them, as witnessed in the appropriately titled ?Broken Patterns?, in grandiose string arrangements.

After a longer hiatus and maybe even a few not-so-brilliant releases, Type is back on track with this excellent release. And the new Grouper album is just around the corner. 9/10 -- Jan-Arne Sohns (25 June, 2008)