9/15/2023 0 Comments Dying light update 1.39![]() ![]() Everything in this world is bright and captivating. ![]() There’s a welcoming cadence in the arrangements and chord progressions of Letters to My Robot Son that are familiar but assembled with Corntuth’s own interesting articulations. Dizzying arpeggios melt into whimsical landscapes. Corntuth’s sense of melody is infectious as he layers hook after hook on top of one another so that every aural crevice is filled with harmonic expression. Synth sequences dance in the haze with resonant fervor folded into electronic mazes. Corntuth Letters to My Robot Son (Flow State Records)īeneath a soft sheen of tape hiss, futuristic utopian landscapes emerge from a faded neon fog. The Hands of Grace is a beautiful invitation into a timeless feeling. Carla Blank’s violin and Roger Glenn’s flute become beacons whenever they appear. Reed’s daughter, Tennessee, lights up “How High the Moon” with her spoken word, the delivery, and cadence matching the arrangement perfectly. Familiar moods twist through unfamiliar phrasings to arrive in dusty alleyways stripped of their facade. The piano-based work (with minimal accompaniment in places) paints detailed silhouettes of stories filled with humor, joy, and despair. Reed’s songs have a lyrical pensiveness, even in their most jubilant structures. The Hands of Grace features original music he composed for his 2021 play, The Slave Who Loved Caviar, presented for the first time in this format. He’s a towering figure, and there’s not much he can’t do. To call American poet, novelist, songwriter, playwright, and so much more Ishmael Reed a legend undersells the truth quite a bit. Ishmael Reed The Hands of Grace (Reading Group) In the end, an air of hope permeates the flickering aural streams, guiding us ever closer to deliverance. Vendil’s piano and keyboard arrangements are the lifeblood of each piece, buoyed by her transfixing vocalizations and her collaborators’ accouterments. Vendil’s phrasings are so engaging, pulling our focus ever closer as cadences rise and fall with an imperious push across the breadth of what it feels like to let go. Tension is a gilded force percolating in the foundations of May We Know Our Own Strength as these passages search inward to bring out a buried power. Along with a host of outstanding artists (Laura Cocks, Hajnal Pivnick, Mara Mayer, and Marina Kifferstein), pointillist excursions coalesce and break apart at just the right moments. The pianist and composer threads intricate, obscure patterns into compelling sonic narratives. Sugar Vendil May We Know Our Own Strength (Gold Bolus)Īt the core of this incredible album are three stunning compositions from Sugar Vendil. Evergreen is a powerful, moving document that sits with the best of his expansive catalog. This music feels ageless, as though it’s always existed somewhere in the ether, waiting for Shiroishi to bridge a connection and pull it into this world. Passages hold together with gossamer arpeggios and glassine reflections, his voice lingering in the shadows like a permanent ghost. Shiroishi channels his woodwinds-based work’s inquisitive, emotive spirit into new sonic shapes and ideas. Field recordings made on those trips are foundational to Evergreen, where they’re imbued by synths, clarinet, and voice. ![]() Evergreen has its roots in Shiroishi’s visits to Evergreen Cemetary in Los Angeles, where many of his family members are buried. One of the most unstoppable forces in music shows a new side. Use code ‘snow’ for 25% off anything at The Jewel Garden through the end of the month. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |