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Jason Corder makes music under the name offthesky. His Light Loss (55'31") is an album of strange moments, injected with unexpected motives and meaning. Somnolent and forbidding, its five inescapable soundscapes do not easily fade into the background. We wander through this album like a visitor to someone else's deep dream. Detached, disjointed, yet artful in his depths Corder embraces simplicity, sleekness and a sense of space. Using ambience as much as it uses sound Light Loss manages to connect with the listener in a remarkable cohesion. At certain points this work draws blood in a way that seems healing. Beautiful voices emanate from an ethereal realm, while cloudy electronic drones drift and breathe in reflective transcendence. In places sprawling to the point of formlessness, Light Loss here becomes exquisitely captivating. Piano as well as reed and stringed instruments occasionally make themselves known - but it is the unidentifiable sounds that provide a smoldering cindery quality. Lightly scraped cymbals and washes add an extra layer of meditative richness. Bending tones wail above bass guitar plucks, as sustaining and static laden tones go all-out spooky and electrifying. Beginning quietly, each track slowly veers into an unusual atmosphere. We may feel a chilling shadow creep across the listening space - but with changes so gradual it is a wonder to hear where we finally end up. What sinks in while Light Loss spins is the spell of a liminal realm. With no apparent pattern or system behind this music, one is left to reflect on its ways and power.
- Chuck van Zyl/STAR'S END 6 May 2015 |
