PAPER TAPES

This is it, we might have found the perfect score for train traveling and sweltering hot evenings. Following his debut EP Homecoming, Paper Tapes is about to release his first LP : Child , out November 10th on Geographie Records. Beyond his own references (Stereolab, the French Touch, and soundtracks from the 70’s), the Frenchman delivers moving dreamy pop tunes and rich instrumentals, a genuine escape.

The immediacy of Pop

If this album is a real turning point for the French songwriter, a quick flashback is necessary : A native of Lyon, Cyril Angleys started his musical journey as a guitar player in Brace ! Brace !, one of France’s spearheads in terms of new indie-rock band. Without putting aside this collective effort, he decided to launch his own solo project, which he named Paper Tapes. « Everybody’s writing and composing in Brace ! Brace ! But I needed a project with more latitude. At that time, I started to get into synth, to write songs with synth. Then I figured that I could make my own thing with it, in total autonomy » A few demos took shape from his Parisian flat. Much more experienced with guitar than keyboard,

Cyril learned to control a small Yamaha synth, which led him to new ways of writing : « Immediacy is what strikes me the most regarding pop, and music in general. There’s something really instinctive in the way you can work out chords on a synth. A chord can mean so many different things depending on which texture you chose. »

The album Challenge

The « Homecoming » Ep materialised on his laptop a few months later. After composing new tracks, it’s now time to think about what it’s going to sound like. To produce the EP, Angleys got some help from long time friend Barth Bouveret (Marble Arch, Brace ! Brace !, Good Morning TV). The result - five songs with stunning melodies - is a reminder of soundtracks from the 70’s as well as an evocation of pop heroes such as Stereolab and Air. With his solo project on track, Angleys had a release party in 2020... on the cusp of the coming lockdowns. Undeterred, he found some new inspiration, reworked some old tracks, wrote new ones, and soon had a brand new Album. « An album is a long run, it’s more challenging. With this format, you need to reach deeper into yourself. But it also gives you way more possibilities, more space to work on structures, instrumentals, to experiment, in order to tell your story »

Imaginary

Many recording sessions later, « Child » is finally achieved. With 10 tracks, the album reveals solar atmospheres studded with crystal-clear guitars, round basslines, and ethereal synths. Homogenous, pop, and slightly psychedelic, « Child » is exploring many themes, but the main one is imagination.

« Since I was a kid, I always had a close bound with imagination. I wish that my music can have a kind of « evocation power ». For instance, I like to listen to music in trains because I’ve nothing else to do, I just have to let it flow. I’m always looking for this escaping thing, that’s why film scores are so important do me »

When you ask him about the album cover, created by graphic Designer Simon Heller, Cyril conclues « I wanted a direct picture. Child refers to the passing and the ending of childhood, and I think this ice cream is a good way of picturing it. This album is a milestone in my life, but it’s also a way to look at certain behaviors, sometimes very childish, even flippant, that I can observe around me. »