Foxy Digitalis
From the opening moments of SANAM’s “Ayouha Al-Taiin Fi Al-Mawt,” vocalist Sandy Chamoun spits fire. She recites Paul Chaoul’s poem of the same name with a frenetic energy that infects the entire track. “The track is a description of a hallucinatory state of clarity, from a stream-of-consciousness text by poet Paul Chaoul who raves endlessly […]
Dichotomies are everything on Diego Caicedo’s Ascendit In Inferno. The Colombian guitarist (currently based in Barcelona) keeps listeners alert as he nimbly moves from one mode to another. In the opening corridors, acoustic guitar plucks wind circuitous pathways through jagged scenery, evoking moving figures and craggy peaks. A perilous shadow looms across Ascendit In Inferno, shrouding sparks […]
From the opening moments of “Pond Water (Typha),” a frenetic sound storm overwhelms. Dawning visions spill through the textural drones and push thoughts inward. We find ourselves trying to shut down our reactions to the incandescent sonic layers because Cyparissus frames this music in a brittle shell. The unrelenting emotion of “Pond Water (Typha)” will […]
From a quixotic trickle, an entire atmospheric world unfolds. Synthetic aquifers spring into crisp atmospheres, buoyed by gentle orchestrations and elegant vibraphone resonances. William Selman’s intricate sound world is rich with vivid details coloring in the aural textures of “Leaky Paradise” with concentric melodies and blurred boundaries. It’s difficult to tell where field recordings end […]
There’s a feeling of worlds colliding to form new worlds on Cheryl E. Leonard and Wobbly’s fantastic debut collaboration, Multiple Park. Familiar sounds are dissected and processed, combined with synthetic environments and machinations, pressing listeners into spaces, at times uncomfortable, for inward investigation of outside areas. “Ostrasidian” rattles and gently grinds against a phantom backdrop, unearthing […]
The opening rattles and lilting repetitions foreshadow the emotional gravity Ky releases on “All The Sad And Loving People.” Auto-tuned vocals flicker from all directions over repeating synth phrases and spacious, atmospheric loops. Wistful memories bleed in from the periphery, covered in a vaporous hiss, obscuring details so only the most powerful feelings make it […]
On Garudan Wing by Matt LaJoie On his fifth solo guitar LP, Matt LaJoie further ascends toward swirling star masses and an ever-brightening sun. This is effervescent music, bubbling with the sparkling joys of life. Elusive melodies flit between clouds, sharpening the glistening timbres with assuredness and purpose. LaJoie weaves resonant worlds from guitar loops. […]
The day is bright on “Bloom,” the latest single from Blue Lake’s forthcoming Sun Arcs. Using a hand-built 48-string zither, guitars, cello, woodwinds, percussion, and more, Jason Dungan creates an expansive, resonant landscape glittering beyond the horizon. Emergent melodies fold into each other, sending cascading harmonies skyward as the piece takes on an effervescent hue. Dungan […]
A sense of urgency blossoms in the synthetic waves of Apologist’s “Skin Like Ghosts” from her upcoming album, Everything Feels Brighter. Subtle shifts in the sonic terrain cast prismatic shadows against a swaying backdrop of electronic glimmers. This music has an edge, as though it cuts through a barrier holding back emotional crests. Everything is trying […]