TuneLab
Tale Of Us for Cercle
at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, France
There is no more appropriate venue for Tale Of Us than an empty airport terminal at Charles de Gaulle. The architecture is brutalist, the mood is melancholic, and the music sounds like the score to a film about people leaving each other. This is melodic techno at its most cinematic, and if you don't feel a little existential dread mixed with euphoria, you're not listening properly. The BPM average of 126.1 belies a set that actually ranges from 122 to a surprising 164 — though that spike is likely a momentary breakdown or effect. The dominant keys (7A and 12A) give everything a dark, minor-key flavour, while the energy profile (0.60 low, 0.33 mid) keeps the focus on atmosphere over force.
The mixing is all about long, seamless blends: tracks like Aether's 'Raven' and Remcord's 'Koto' are layered like oil paints, with textures that build and recede. There are no hands-in-the-air drops here — just slow-burning crescendos that feel like a weight being lifted from your chest. Crate diggers will obsess over the opening track: Dream Catcher's 'Architectura' is a deep, hypnotic piece that sounds like it was ripped from a forgotten 90s ambient record. Robot's 'Opto' is a snarling, distorted beast that cuts through the haze. Three Words max's 'The Drifter' brings a broken-beat swing that's rare in this genre.
And Fideles' 'Midnight Rembler' is the kind of track that makes you close your eyes and sway — all ghostly vocals and rolling sub-bass. The journey starts with that haunting opening, builds through the Mathame remix (a true highlight at nearly eight minutes), and ends with Brian Cid's 'Petalos Sole' — a gentle, cosmic comedown that feels like the first light after a long night. This is Tale Of Us at their most restrained and most powerful. We are all just passengers here.