"The Sun's Gone Dim" oozes intelligence – it's a single that is to be appreciated and acknowledged rather than simply enjoyed. It is taken from Johansson's IBM 1401: A User's Manual – an album inspired by a 30 year old recording of an IBM mainframe his father made on reel to reel tape. It is performed by a sixty-piece string quartet and features
specially created electronics as well as the original recording of the singing computer.
It is hauntingly melodic, emotive and powerfully atmospheric. It will surprise no one that Johansson has spent much of his career working on soundtracks of various forms – it is easy to imagine the piece as the score to a scene set on a snow swept mountain, perhaps even in his native Iceland.
As a single it is difficult to think of a moment when such music would be appropriate yet it somehow remains incredibly endearing. It is unlikely to remain in your CD player for long but may well be one you come back to. Words:
Joe Kent
