EP Review: 10 Waves Of You – Sail

Album Review: 10 Waves Of You – Sail

The soft sounds of the tide lapping against the shore greets us at the start of this album. Hardly surprising, with an album entitled Sail. While 10WOY’s 2015 album Fields Of Venus was a collection of space sounds, this album is unmistakably naval inspired.

Hailing from Vigevano, Italy, 10 Waves Of You is the solo project of Luca Crivellaro. It seems that I listen to as many one-man projects as I do full bands these days, and I can’t help but be impressed at the sheer skill and versatility that artists like Crivellaro exhibit.

Reminiscent of relaxing on a sailboat, this is music to have when you have nothing better to do than lie back and soak up some rays. “Sail” is the smooth neo-classical piano led introduction, and “South West Wind” contains more body. Soft piano playing upon gentle swells sets the relaxing mood. Some nice delayed guitar adds complexity whilst keeping it calm. The drumming is tight, with a short echoing tail.

“Sunburst” ups the ante – ever so slightly – with more over driven crescendos and crashing cymbals – and “Round Window” follows suit by bringing in more rock components. The end of the last track almost sounds like whale song, with the slow whining sounds made by guitars.

Part of the attractiveness of this release is the deceptive simplicity of it all. It builds ever so slowly across all four tracks, but without resorting to crescendocore clichés. Delicate waves pile atop each other, slowly bringing in a tide of relaxing atmosphere. Contrary to the more aggressive and unnatural previous album Fields of Venus, Waves is calming and just floats along with tranquil excellence.

It is clear that Crivellaro has placed careful thought upon which tones to use to recreate the sounds in his head. Silky pads set the mood, high-pitched strings politely ask for your attention, and tight percussion binds the songs together. The sounds all layer and marry beautifully, inviting you to feel warm sunlight on your arms, taste salt spray on your lips and hear the distant cry of circling seabirds.

Clocking in at just less than 20 minutes, this album offers a small taste of lush textural brilliance. Serene and evocative, I can imagine it as the perfect soundtrack for a calm day on the sea. Crivellaro joins the ranks of incredible multi-instrumentalists who can single-handedly bring the music in their heads to life, and I thank him for it. Waves is one ambient work worth taking note of.

10 Waves Of You Links:

Joseph James

Album Review: Blueneck – The Outpost

I fell in love with Blueneck as soon as I heard them. I heard their song “Man Of Lies” when I was listening through the mammoth Post Engineering compilation that came out last year. That was it – I was hooked. I looked up Blueneck’s Bandcamp page and purchased their catalogue.

The Outpost (Denovali Records) is Blueneck’s sixth studio album, and latest since 2014’s King Nine. It is also well worth a listen.

The Outpost was first planned as a side-project from singer-songwriter Duncan Attwood and guitarist
Rich Sadler, before it became truely realised as a full Blueneck release. How did the two of them come up with such an expansive sound? Herein lies some of the wonders of digital instruments. And although I usually prefer “real” instruments above their electronic counterparts, I must admit that Blueneck do a stellar job. Everything works together in cohesion to complement each part that makes up the ambient soundscape.

I’d appreciate slightly less autotuning, but Duncan Attwood’s vocals are standout and enhance the tender ballads dramatically. He borders on whispering at times, just loud enough for you to hear the hurt. His melancholy is almost tangible in “Hypnos”.

Image: Stewart Black Photography

Opening track “From Beyond” features a drum track that reminds me of Phil Collins’ signature hit “In The Air Tonight”. Like in Collins’ song, the drum track helps to build suspense as we escalate into a climax. The song slowly transforms into a synthetic, industrial feeling track, with autotuned vocals, heavy reverb and a tortured screaming crescendo. This well-crafted masterpiece sets the tone for the album beautifully.

Next up is lead single “Ghosts”. It takes me back to when I first heard “Man Of Lies” and reminds me of why I first fell in love with Blueneck. Like “From Beyond”, this track just gets better as it progresses. The catchy chanted bridge leads into a gorgeous high-pitched guitar riff, before dynamically reverting back to the sparse piano mantra that first tied the song together.

An underlying tension boils beneath many of these tracks, coated with an ethereal glossy veneer. I love how Blueneck walk the line so well – balancing the calm solemnity with the awesome distorted moments. One great example is the during the spacious bridge in “The White Ship” that leaves us hanging. It’s so empty, but full of promise, because you know that this ambient segment is going to end with something huge.

We hear everything you’d expect to hear from most major post-rock releases: swirling riffs, big swells, crashing crescendos. There’s great guitar playing and brilliant drumming, as well as the haunting vocals which are rare to find within this genre. But somehow this album seems to pack more than the sum of its parts. Something is immediately enticing and accessible, despite the depressing nature of the lyrics, and the longer playtimes of half the tracks.

The Outpost is an incredibly moody album. There is such stunning beauty in the music, topped with Attwood’s mournful vocals. If you like eerie post-rock drawing on electronica and saturated in feeling then I suggest you give Blueneck a listen.

The Outpost is out via Denovali Records on 25 November

Links:

Joseph James

Photos: Jakob and Into Orbit at San Fran, Wellington

Jakob Into Orbit Hex San Fran Wellington

Jakob w/ Into Orbit and Hex

San Fran, Wellington

Saturday 19 November 2016

Into Orbit

Ian Moir – Drums

Paul Stewart – Guitar

Jakob

Maurice Beckett – Bass

Jeff Boyle – Guitar

Jason Johnston – Drums

All photos taken by Joseph James

Album Review: These People Here – A Bitter Seed

Seattle quintet These People Here have just released their début A Bitter Seed, an album that escapes pigeon-holing. The first track suggests post-rock, but then upon hearing further songs I can’t decide. Indie? Rock? Regardless of how you classify it, the music is simultaneously unsettling and beautiful.

Four of the seven tracks feature vocals – stunningly haunting singing with more than a touch of melancholy. Keyboardist Aileen Paron uses her voice to create stunning harmonies that enhances the brooding moodiness of the music.

Rebecca Gutterman and Rian Turner bring duel guitars which layer atop each other. Their bio lists math rock/post-hardcore legends Rodan as a formative influence of the band, which becomes very clear when you listen to the built up swells and eccentric noodling away. Thomas Edwards provides some deft drumming that captures my attention as I listen. He’s no hard hitter, but makes up for it with speed, finesse and variety with his fills and flourishes.

A Bitter Seed is dramatic and depressingly, thematically speaking, but it’s not all doom and gloom. As I said, the band defy classification, and there are some great moments that make me smile at the originality. One of my highlights is the catchy bassy riffs in the opening section of “Fading Light” And I love the effects in final track “Catastrophism”, an instrumental number that sounds reversed, with eerie wailing punctuating the ebbs in the music.

One thing’s for sure, These People Here know how to set a mood. I hesitate to use the term gothic, but I can definitely picture Edgar Allen Poe enjoying this album whilst petting his pet raven and sipping some red wine. Check A Bitter Seed out if you like your music original sounding and slightly on the macabre side.

These People Here links

Joseph James

Arctic Drones’ tribute to Explosions In The Sky – The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place

We are honoured to be included in a piece that David Zeidler has put together to celebrate the thirteenth anniversary of Explosions In The Sky’s seminal third album, The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place. Joseph’s snippet features alongside a great many other musicians, designers and writers involved in the wider post-rock scene, all reflecting on the EITS album and how it has influenced them.

The Blaze and the Bloom: Explosions in the Sky’s The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place and its Integral Duality

David (who organised the Arctic Drones article) had also teamed up with our own writer CJ Blessum to organise the incredible international post-rock compilation Open Language, released earlier this year.

Thanks to David Zeidler and Arctic Drones for involving Will Not Fade in your work!

Will Not Fade

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