Album Review: Floating In Space – The Edge Of The Light

Floating In Space The Edge Of Light
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There is little wonder that Ruben Caballero approached niche record label Deep Elm when he was looking for someone to release his début album, The Edge of Light. Deep Elm have switched their core focus from emo to cinematic post-rock in recent years, and Caballero’s project, Floating In Space, fits within this new vision beautifully.

Deep Elm have always been staunchly independent. In recent years they have adopted a brave strategy and made the move to Bandcamp, offering their entire catalogue up for pay-what-you-want. Obviously this does not make great business sense to offer your product up for potentially no return. The label still managed to make money however, by licensing their music for film soundtracks and advertisements.

Similar to other Deep Elm poster boys like Lights & Motion/Christoffer Franzen, Moonlit Sailor and Dorena, Floating In Space offers an inviting musical soundscape to whisk you away into places far away. The songs stand alone as strong releases, but also offer the potential to soundtrack a big screen blockbuster.

Caballero explores dichotomies with his music, stating “Through my songs, I try to show my vision of a world where light and shadows, calm and fears, solitude and togetherness meet in the vastness of space.” Hence the chosen title for this musical outlet: Floating In Space.

He also comments on the cinematic nature of the music: “There are two things that never cease to inspire me when I look through my window: the sea and the sky. I see all vital experiences, dreams and fears more clearly when taking a night walk along the coastline. Those walks inspire me to describe my feelings through music. So I’ve created an album that I would want to listen to, as if my experiences and feelings were sequences of a movie with my music as the soundtrack””

Floating In Space Ruben.jpg

One setback is that The Edge of Light sounds more like a collection of cinematic snippets than a cohesive album. Unlike most post-rock/ambient projects, the tracks found here never extend far past standard single duration, with longest song ‘Redshift’ clocking in at just shy of four minutes long. This is not to say that brevity is a bad thing, but more a suggestion that some of the tracks could have been pushed further and extended upon.

Sure enough, The Edge of Light spans the emotional spectrum, visiting moods and feelings with lush instrumentation. It really is a ride, ranging from intimate delicacy to intense urgency. One can hear the time and passion Caballero has invested into this project when we unfold the layers and notice each subtle component.

If cinematic music takes your fancy, then let Floating In Space take you on an expansive journey through time, space and emotion.


Floating In Space Links

Bandcamp: http://deepelmdigital.com/album/the-edge-of-the-light

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/floatinginspacemusic/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/floating_music

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/floatinginspace_official/

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/floatinginspacemusic

 

Joseph James

Live Review and Photo Gallery: Caligula’s Horse at Valhalla, Wellington

Caligula's Horse Valhalla Wellington
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Caligula’s Horse

w/ Clæmus and ELIM

Valhalla, Wellington

Wednesday 1 February

Sadly I missed ELIM’s set, but was able to catch the other support act, Clæmus, who proved themselves a great choice to open for Brisbane prog-rockers Caligula’s Horse. Clæmus have a similar progressive sound, and plenty of energy to bring their set to life. It’s amazing how such talented locals keep coming out of the woodwork. Where do they keep hiding? Anyway, now that I’ve discovered them I’ll be sure to attend more gigs that they play.

This was a last-minute show, announced mere weeks before the event. Caligula’s Horse were due to come to NZ for the first time to support Opeth at their gig in Auckland, and seemingly decided to add a Wellington date the night beforehand, much to our pleasure.

The lads in Caligula’s Horse were buzzing to see such a turnout. And it wasn’t bad, but it was hardly packed either. It was however, a case of quality over quantity. Valhalla wasn’t filled to the brim, but the fans who had shown up were diehards, many of whom sang all along to all the words, much to singer Jim Grey’s delight.

I think Caligula’s Horse strike a great balance. They described their own music as “prog-wank”, but I disagree.Sure, the songs are long, and have noodly solos, but they don’t venture into boring territory like some other prog-rock bands. The solos are interesting, the music makes you want to move, and the vocals are on point.

I’m writing this a few days late, having been out-of-town yesterday for the Opeth gig. So with hindsight on my side, I can safely say that it was worth seeing Caligula’s Horse play at Valhalla. OK, it was worth it regardless, but the Valhalla set was far better than the set that they played opening for Opeth in Auckland. This is not to say that the band played badly in Auckland, but there are only so many songs you can fit into a half hour set when you play prog-rock. A band of this calibre deserves more than 30 minutes to show off their talents on stage. This headlining show gave provided us Wellingtonians the opportunity to see Caligula’s Horse let loose at their peak, and not constrained into a supporting slot.

Something I loved was seeing guitarist Sam Vallen’s grandmother positioned just in front of the stage filming her grandson’s band on her smart phone. I wouldn’t usually expect to see that generation at a gig, let alone at a metal bar late on a Wednesday night! It certainly brought a grin to my face to see a grandmother so proud of her grandson.

It was an absolute pleasure watching the band play, drawing from a music new and old. Half way through their set, my mate turned to me and said “I think that this is the best band I’ve seen play at Valhalla!” I thought about it for a minute, and I agree. Caligula’s Horse are a band worth seeing, and I am happy that we saw them play their own unbridled set as well as an opening set for Opeth the following night.

 


Links:

Website: http://caligulashorse.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caligulashorseband/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CaligulasHorse

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/samvallen

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caligulashorse/

 

Words and photos by Joseph James

Album Review: Klone – Unplugged (Live Acoustic Album)

Klone Unplugged Album Cover
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Hailing from France, Klone are a prog rock band signed with Pelagic-records. They have released an acoustic album Unplugged, acting as a pseudo greatest-hits. Sourced from their previous two albums, the songs stripped bare and performed acoustically take on a new life. Throw in a fantastic Depeche Mode cover of “People are People” and you have a curious proposition.

The songs were recorded live at Théâtre de La Coupe d’Or, with two exceptions recorded in the studio. They offer an opportunity to hear musicians with nowhere to hide.

I’d not heard Klone before writing this review, now based on the singer’s voice alone I want to hear more. This is not the first time a rock artist has taken their music and stripped away the bells and whistles to leave the pure songwriting on display.

The first artist that springs to mind for me is Alice in Chains with their infamous Live on MTV album and video. It shows a band ravaged by drug abuse, yet still capable of incredible art. The songs usually associated with distorted guitars and walls of noise become more delicate and nuanced and take on a new life.

Wow. That cover of “People are People” is good.

The stock footage video that they’ve cobbled together fits well with the musical content. Depeche Mode seem to be a consistent thread amongst bands that I like. One of those hidden influences woven into sounds of music that has taken the next step down that sonic road. From In Flames covering “Everything Counts”; Mike Shinoda‘s (Linkin Park) excellent remix of “Enjoy the Silence”; A Perfect Circle‘s and now Klone‘s cover of “People are People”. Each version demonstrates what people take from the band and how they honour it in their own style. Those covers listed above are so vastly different, yet they all honour the same band. It’s brilliant.

If there is one thing I could criticise about this release, is the lack of backing vocals. As powerful and beautiful as the singer’s voice is – it’s hard not to imagine it being better with harmonies or other voices to play off. I’m not expecting The Beach Boys levels of vocal harmonies, but something to add another dimension to what is a very solid vocal performance.

The musicianship receives top marks, there is nothing that stands out as distracting from the song. Not having heard Klone in “Rock mode” I’m now curious how the songs will translate. No doubt for fans of the band they will have the same nerves about hearing their favourite tracks done acoustically.

Well worth a listen, it’s a great low-key soundtrack for a weekend.

Klone Unplugged Review Promo Pic


Klone’s new album Unplugged is due out on Pelagic Records on February 17 2017

Links:
Official: http://www.klonosphere.com/klone
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kloneband
Soundcloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/kloneofficial
Label: http://www.pelagic-records.com

This review was originally posted by Murray Stace at his site Relative Silence