Robag Wruhme: Venq Tolep

Double LP version includes 7" with two bonus tracks, postcard, and download. Robag Wruhme takes synthetic sounds and sampled noises, cuts them to fit, and turns them into beats without his music ever sounding pieced-together; every single percussive sound is a compact unit, bursting with melody. For Venq Tolep, his first album-length release on Pampa Records in eight years, Wruhme chooses to dig deeper, expanding the space of these elements. He finds beats inside the beats, opens them up further, discovers hooklines, harmonies and feels where he can dispense with rhythm entirely. From his first releases on Freude am Tanzen one could hear it, a light-footed sense of rhythm. Venq Tolep opens with two melodic, melancholic pieces: "Advent" sets one to dancing, while "Westfal" has the listener lying in the grass amid the buzzing heat and rustling wind, hearing the voice of Lysann Zander, with whom Wruhme has worked previously on projects including his album Thora Vukk (PAMPA 002CD, 2011). Hers is not the only familiar name on this album - Sidsel Endresen and Bugge Wesseltoft have both appeared on releases from Wruhme's bootleg label. Here, they are featured on "Nata Alma," a laid-back club track. "Iklahx" and "Ak-Do 5" both possess a carefree percussiveness, while "Komalh" and "Ago Lades" prove that when Wruhme talks about techno, he means club music more akin to the elegance of London two-step, fueled by R&B/hip-hop and swingbeat, and far removed from the Belgian-Teutonic bunker sound. "Bézique Atout" is a reinterpretation of "Domino," a track from French producer Oxia which Wruhme remixed in 2017, stylishly making it his own. Two more familiar tracks are "Volta Copy," a version of his 2015 hit "Volta Cobby," minus the beat, but now propelled by arpeggios, and "Ende #2," like greetings received from around the world in a day, picks up where "Ende" from Thora Vukk leaves off. Title track "Venq Tolep" draws on all the album's various movements in four minutes and 18 seconds: the light, pensive mood, the subtle, driving rhythm, the ambient-sounding layers of synthesized strings and the percussive electric piano melody lines. Venq Tolep has a well-rounded sound, like an arch unfolding in space; that, of course, is the universe of Robag Wruhme. With Venq Tolep, Wruhme creates something extraordinary - the album may speak the language of club music, but the music verges on feeling like songs. Is it techno pop? Pop techno? Pop ambient? Ambient pop?

Shipping is available to the 48 contiguous United States. We are unable to ship to PO Boxes, International locations, or APO/FPO addresses. 

Please ensure your address is entered correctly. We are unable to redirect to an alternate shipping address once an order is placed.If your order contains multiple items, it may ship from different warehouse locations.

Tracking information will be sent as items are shipped.

Allow up to 5 business days for your order to process when calculating delivery dates. 

Note: Additional delays may occur due to severe weather or other carrier delays. 

Standard Shipping: allow 7-10 business days for delivery. Albums will be shipped via USPS Media Mail; all other products via UPS Ground or FedEx Ground.

Expedited Shipping: allow 2-5 business days for delivery. Albums will be shipped via USPS Priority Mail; all other products via UPS 2-Day Air or FedEx 2-Day Air.

Overnight Shipping: allow 1-2 business days for delivery. All products will be shipped via UPS Next Day Air or FedEx Next Day Air. 

We offer a 30-day money back guarantee on all products purchased from Victrola.com. All items must be returned as new in their original packaging, including all accessories and cables. Albums must be unopened to receive a refund. Missing items will be charged based on suggested retail prices.

All returns must be accompanied by a valid return authorization number (RMA) issued by Victrola. If an RMA is not obtained prior to shipping, the returned product will be refused and returned to sender.

If the item is no longer wanted, the shipping cost is not refundable and returns must be shipped prepaid by the customer. There is a 15% restocking fee that will be calculated based on the price of the product once the item is refunded.

If the item is defective, a pre-paid shipping label to return the product will be provided, and no restocking fee applies.

To set up a return for refund please visit Customer Care. Be sure to include your order # and reason for your return when submitting your request.

View more information about returns and warranty here.