Night Tapes’ debut album portals//polarities is a deeply immersive, genre-blurring journey shaped by place and emotion. Created by London trio Iiris Vesik, Max Doohan, and Sam Richards, the album weaves global field recordings—from Estonian swamps to Mexican mountains—into dreamy, electronic soundscapes. Originally recording quietly in a shared house, the group embraced their constraints, crafting music that became time capsules of their surroundings.

Their process blends traditional instruments with laptop production, drawing from synth-pop, shoegaze, trip-hop, and ambient music. Songs often shift unpredictably, blurring the line between band and studio project. Much of the album was made on the road, in Airbnbs and hotels between gigs, emphasizing creativity within limitation. Their use of tapes and spontaneous sampling adds raw, human imperfections that digital methods lack. For Vesik, the album explores inner dualities and personal freedom, with emotional depth conveyed more through sound than lyrics. portals//polarities is a bold debut—personal, political, and vibrantly alive.

The band’s previous releases have been supported by DIY, Clash, NME, Future Music, Gorilla vs Bear, BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music and many more. Show less