Tanoki
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is the electronica/trip-hop/funk/experimental genre-blending project of Paul Mahon. Born and raised in Kilkenny, Ireland, Tanoki’s music features a myriad of styles,
from funky brass to ethereal piano, walking the line between delight in technological and fear of what it may do to human connection.
His songs blend human samples and powerful performances with rich synths and washed-out arpeggios, making present the question of technology’s beauty and danger. Tanoki’s work so far has gained the attention of RTÉ 2FM, KCLR 96FM, Hot Press and DeMars Entertainment to name a few, earning ‘Track of the Week’ for all three singles from the upcoming album. ‘File New’ is Tanoki’s debut album.
File New
Tanoki’s debut LP tells a three-act story, each with three songs. The first act introduces the question at the heart of the project, concerning what is real and what is fantasy. The second begins to explore this with urgency, and then chaos, with intense performances from Tay Edwards and Farah Elle. The final act invites self-reflection, with stunning violin and piano improvisation from Colm O’Caoimh, and a technological climax on fiery closing gem, ‘Hotline’.
How would you describe your album in a sentence?
It’s a Journey.
What's your favourite song on "File New"?
Honestly, It changes every time I return to it, but of the non-Single releases so far I think “This Place We’re in” is my fav.
Which song caused the most "trouble" or was the most time intensive to produce?
“Let Go” probably took me the longest in the mix as had a lot to contend with, trying to reach the balances was tricky enough. I hope I got it in the end anyways!
The Album it's definitely a great mixture of styles, which song would you recommend for a listener who has never listened to "Tanoki" before?
I’d say start at the start and see how ya get on. I does sort of get a bit more experimental as it goes, but I would love for folks to give each track at least one shot as you never know what might tickle you until ya try.
...and what's next?
Next up for TANOKI is a live A/V show which i’m working on at the moment, so really looking forward to getting that out there.
