Having established themselves as Efterklang, one of Denmark’s more fetching exports, Casper Clausen, Rasmus Stolberg and Mads Brauer formed Liima in 2015 with Finnish percussionist Tatu Rönkkö to explore their more spontaneous, improvisatory side.
“Their second album is named after the year of Clausen’s birth – the rest were born either side of the year – but also finds them delving into their musical youth, and not just thanks to its John Carpenter-style front cover.” – Wyndham Wallace
Throughout, they nod to the decade’s synthpop in ways that occasionally recall M83’s early work (especially on People Like Us). But their own arty, experimental tendencies ensure 1982 is far more than a trip back in time.
The extended introduction to David Copperfield manages to combine Steve Reich’s techniques with Trevor Horn’s production style – though Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor is actually responsible – while the rich textures and gentle pace of Life Is Dangerous sound like a moody cross between Godley & Creme and Hall & Oates.
The title track sounds like a slow-mo Miami Vice rewrite by a pumped-up China Crisis, a concept as unlikely as it is original, but perhaps even this isn’t as implausible as the unusual, ‘stimulating’ confession that concludes the smooth, nocturnal grooves of Jonathan, I Can’t Tell You.
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