Spotlight On... Tarn
Following the release of his debut album as Tarn, we catch up with Glasgow-based producer and pianist Dan Brown
When we first heard it at the end of July, Tarn’s Strange Fields immediately captured our imaginations and piqued our interest. Managing to pack so much emotion into a predominantly instrumental record is no mean feat, but it’s what Tarn, aka Glasgow-based pianist Dan Brown (not that one), manages to do in spades across his debut album. We catch up with Brown to find out more, and shine a spotlight on Tarn.
Firstly, I’d love to know more about you, the music that inspired you growing up and that continues to inspire you now?
One of the first bands I saw live growing up was Wild Beasts. Looking back I think Two Dancers and Smother were really important in the direction my music took. It was the first band that I’d heard incorporate piano in a more electronic setting and I was drawn in by their hypnotic use of interlocking arpeggios and expansive reverbs. James Blake also continues to inspire. Seeing videos of his trio performing Retrograde live and how he blended Bach style piano, 808 drums and fat synth pads on a Prophet into a cohesive sound was very inspiring. More recently his modular album Playing Robots into Heaven was on rotation; the title track in particular is hauntingly beautiful and is very leftfield from some of his work as a trap producer. I love exploring new sounds and really appreciate it when artists aren’t afraid to change direction.
What’s your background when it comes to writing and releasing your own music? How did the idea for your new solo project as Tarn come about?
The first music I released was in 2021 under my name. It was an EP of instrumental folk music called Rewilding. It was mostly acoustic, made in my bedroom studio at the time. This led to my first full-length album Nomad. Still very much melodically rooted in traditional music but this time more eclectic, exploring more electronic sounds and textures. Around this time I’d picked up a small modular synth case and was also experimenting with processing the piano through it.
At this point it was clear that the music I was writing was in a totally different sound world to the folky stuff and a new alias felt right. Whereas in the previous work I was dabbling on a few different instruments, the Tarn material is more piano-driven which is where I feel more at home. I’m originally from the Lake District so I thought the name Tarn worked to reflect this, as it’s a Cumbrian word for a small lake in the fells.
You just released your debut album as Tarn, Strange Fields, which shares its name with your studio space in the east end of Glasgow. It’s clearly an important place to you, so I’d love to know more about the reason behind naming your album after it?
It’s a special place because of when it came into my life. I was feeling a bit lost in Glasgow but met a very close pal at the start of last year that had just secured a space there and he asked if I’d like to join him and help build a studio together. Over the course of the year we made it into a little DIY production space using lots of salvaged materials. It was the perfect project I needed. At the time I was also living in a converted transit van. I would park up on the street outside and each evening after we’d done some work to the studio I’d stay late and work on the music that was to become this album. The space became a landmark for lots of positive change in my life and a place where I felt like I had found community again.
Image: Tarn by Seth Monchev
And you recently had an album listening party there, followed by an artists' open studios evening. How was the event and who are some of the other creatives you share the space with that we should know about?
The event was lovely... It was so nice to finally share the album with all the other artists, then it was great to see what everyone has been working on. Abi (@abi.charlesworth) works with casting, metal and ceramics and has been working really hard on material for her collection To rest amongst the blades – that is well worth checking out. Cora (@weiss.cora) and Anton (@reticent.volcano) also had a great duo exhibition at Saltspace this summer. There’s so many amazing artists to mention everyone, however we’re all working towards a group show in January so follow @strangefield to hear more about that when it comes. I would like to give a shout out to my studio partner Maks (@maksymalizacja). He’s an incredible guitarist, producer and is working on a new solo project called Good Citizen, that I’m very excited for people to hear when it’s out in the world!
Back to the album... For a predominantly instrumental record, you manage to pack so much emotion into Strange Fields – can you talk us through some of the themes found across the record and in particular how you turned the grief and loss you were experiencing from the end of a relationship into music?
The LP feels like it's in two halves. The first side tackles some of the heavier themes and the second side the more positive. The second track for example, Man off the moon, is an examination of loneliness, based on the astronaut Michael Collins' solitary orbit around the moon as part of the Apollo 11 mission. In contrast with this, the second last track Strange Fields is a celebration of finding community. In dreams we’re still asleep? came at a time I was having really vivid dreams that were making me question how much emotional processing we actually do at night.
I’d say the overarching theme of the album as a whole is the idea of time being the great healer. Whilst time definitely helps you forget the sadness of the breakup itself, it felt bittersweet too as all the positive memories also get hazier. Memories fade finishes the first side and helped me to sit with those feelings. As the track goes on, all of the synth parts get noisier. I sent the piano through an old reel-to-reel recorder too so by the end it picks up all the artefacts that tape is known for. The end of the album finishes with a reprise of this (Echoes of a friend) that is even dustier and fainter. Together, these pieces helped me say goodbye to that part of my life and look back in a positive light.
With the album now out in the world, do you have any more plans as Tarn for the end of this year and beyond?
I’ve been doing a few gigs this year with the project and feel like I’m finally dialling in the tech setup to recreate this music live, so would love to focus on performing a bit more. After I finished the music for Strange Fields and was working through all the steps to release it, I started working on a collection of ambient pieces that I’ll hopefully start to release into the world this autumn. I also have plans to perform with a larger ensemble at some point too so lots in the works!
Strange Fields is out now, available to buy and stream at Bandcamp
Follow Tarn on Instagram @tarn.music