Review: Apparently James Adam Brown had one very definitely theme in mind with There Is Space Under Your Seat. Put simply, he wanted to explore aural interpretations of the human desire to create mental breathing room by pausing emotions to process feelings when circumstances become overwhelming. And, let's face it, they frequently have a habit of doing just that.
Recorded at ICP Studios in Belgium, after demos were laid down in his own facility deep in the stunning Yorkshire Dales, it's hard to imagine a more fitting setting for these ideas to form. A place that's equal parts bleak and beautiful, and certainly remote (in UK terms, at least). So what we have here is sometimes eerie, always stunning, packed with spatiality and a tangible emotional quality you will not be able to escape from.
Review: We also heard from Andrew Wasylyk late last year when he offered up his second LP for the esteemed Clay Pipe Music label. Now it is to Edinburgh's Athens of the North for Parallel Light, another collection of sumptuous ambient sounds that are so much more than just background music. The album is actually an alternate mix of his 2020 long player Fugitive Light And Themes Of Consolation so offers a different perspective with plenty of moving spiritual-jazz and neo-classical sounds that help paint alluring musical landscapes.
Review: Mike Lazarev drops his first album on Past Inside the Present and it's one that reminds us why he has such a great reputation as being one of modern ambient and classical's finest composers. After exploring notions of time on previous records, for this one, he embraces the here and now and that lends itself to a record steeped in mindfulness and meditation. As such, Sacred Tonalities is a perfect accompaniment to introspective moments with textural soundscapes placing you at the centre of them. The harmonics range from soft to gritty, the moods occasionally hint at trance and the layers of bass, piano and arps bring subtle and ever-shifting rhythms.
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