Avi C. Engel & Bradley Sean Alexander: Rewild
(Floralia)
Cassette | DL
Out Now
Avi C. Engel & Bradley Sean Alexander collaborate on Rewild. Andy Brown explores the ambient undergrowth for Louder Than Warfare.
You recognize what it’s like when anxiousness takes maintain – thoughts racing as your coronary heart price will increase… uncomfortable… persistent. It was throughout one in all these moments that I made a decision to hit play on Rewild, the brand new collaborative album from Avi C. Engel and Bradley Sean Alexander. Remarkably, the consequences have been nearly instant. That invasive sense of rigidity eased because the album’s stunning ambient sprawl got here into focus. That is precisely what I wanted.
For the uninitiated, Engel is a Toronto-based songwriter who makes experimental folks, whereas Alexander specialises in blissed-out ambient music and data primarily as anthéne. With even a cursory flick by means of their discographies, it isn’t laborious to listen to how a collaboration may show fruitful. Whereas their respective fields could initially appear fairly completely different, each artists are fairly adept at creating an ethereal, near-magical environment with their music. With Rewild, the duo takes us on an ambient journey into the metaphysical undergrowth.
A Snake Sunbathes efficiently units the tone with a gradual digital drone, shimmering guitar and a gudok that weaves its method by means of the delicate, sonic expanse. Whereas some tracks function a extra conventional vocal, this introductory piece finds Engel’s voice echoing by means of the sound like a ghost within the machine. A close to 10-minute monitor the place you’ll be able to virtually really feel the frantic spin of the world start to decelerate.
What Do We Do Now wraps us up in a blanket of sound, Engel singing about labyrinths and trapdoors as they information us by means of the darkish. Troubled but oddly comforting. The static crackle on Tremulous evokes the picture of TV fuzz and a lonely, dimly lit bed room. When Engel’s serene vocals drift in, warning us of toxic fireflies and tiny beasts, it seems like we’re adrift in some stunning nightmare.
Rusted Flying Machine is a close to 11-minute-long instrumental, but I might fairly fortunately hearken to all of it night time. Celestial drones and fragments of sound that really feel mournful but rejuvenating. I would fall asleep with this one on repeat and simply let it slip inside my desires. 1000 Arms feels equally dreamlike; soothing, saddened and otherworldly. “A thousand arms/ A thousand golden arms/ Attain out of the ocean and pull down the solar and stars” comes the poetic, quietly apocalyptic mantra.
Tidepool is harking back to Angelo Badalamenti’s work on the ultimate sequence of Twin Peaks, particularly the piece Darkish House Low. There’s one thing of that tracks aching darkness and determined solitude to be present in these unusual drones. In some methods, Rewild is a darkish album but the general impact is reassuringly calming. 42 minutes the place you’ll be able to merely embrace the void and let the world slide by.
~
Take heed to Bradley Sean Alexander / anthéne on Bandcamp right here and at Residence Regular right here.
You will discover Avi C. Engel on Bandcamp, Instagram, Bluesky, Fb and Patreon.
All phrases by Andy Brown. You may go to his writer profile and browse extra of his critiques for Louder Than Warfare right here.
A Plea From Louder Than Warfare
Louder Than Warfare is run by a small however devoted impartial workforce, and we depend on the small sum of money we generate to maintain the positioning working easily. Any cash we do get is just not lining the pockets of oligarchs or mad-cap billionaires dictating what our journalists are allowed to assume and write, or hungry shareholders. We all know occasions are powerful, and we need to proceed bringing you information on essentially the most fascinating releases, the newest gigs and anything that tickles our fancy. We’re not pushed by revenue, simply pure enthusiasm for a scene that every one in all us is keen about.
To us, music and tradition are eveything, with out them, our very souls shrivel and die. We don’t cost artists for the publicity we give them and to many, what we do is completely important. Subscribing to one in all our paid tiers takes only a minute, and every sign-up makes a big impact, serving to to maintain the flame of impartial music burning! Please click on the button under to assist.
John Robb – Editor in Chief
