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(2021) Ben Chasny - The Intimate Landscape
Review:
One thing that’s increasingly apparent at this point in Ben Chasny’s musical career is his versatility. In the past he’s kicked up a storm of feedback and fuzz as a member of ear-splittingly loud psych-rock band Comets on Fire, and under his enduring Six Organs of Admittance moniker he’s released a diverse series of albums that run the gamut from folky, atmospheric earlier releases to experiments in chaotic noise-rock using his Hexadic musical system. His last release, June’s The Veiled Sea, was another shift, with “synth ballads, cracked space-glam and 1980s-glossed guitar overload.” The Intimate Landscape is another transformation, focusing on Chasny and his acoustic guitar, with the barest embellishments here and there, and only to serve these robust, confidently composed instrumentals. In tone and theme, The Intimate Landscape pares things back to the relationship between man and nature, between fingers on strings and the resonance of wood. The cover depicts a human face within a landscape, and the song titles place the protagonist in direct relationship with the natural world, whether observing or engaging with the surrounding environment, such as “The Many Faces of Stone,” “Waterfall Path,” and “Dust in the Ravine.” In most cases a single pass of guitar, perhaps two, is enough for Chasny to map out his musical terrain. The sound of fingers squeaking on strings on “Where Have All the Summers Gone” puts Chasny right there in front of you, warts and all. Occasionally the percussive sound of his guitar playing gives the illusion that there might be a banjo twanging away in the mix (“Last Night to Use the Telescope”). And here and there we hear droning vocal harmonies (“Water Dragon”), subtle electric guitar effects (“Star Cascade”), and faint keyboard swells that gently lap at the edges of the guitar lines (“Six Diamonds”). There’s something timeless and transparent about The Intimate Landscape that allows the listener to drift away into a reflective reverie, at one with the landscape itself. Though there’s less of Chasny’s questing idiosyncrasies at play, it’s hard to pick fault with music that taps into such a universal sound, like stepping out of the way of the self to see things anew. It’s beautiful yet strangely daunting; like waking up somewhere familiar and having to reacquaint yourself all over again.
Track Listing:
1.The Many Faces of Stone 02:34
2.Last Night To Use the Telescope 02:58
3.Waterfall Path 02:56
4.Cross-Winged Formation 02:48
5.Water Dragon 02:44
6.Star Cascade 02:11
7.Where Have All the Summers Gone 02:47
8.Circular Road 02:44
9.Six Diamonds 02:52
10.Dust In the Ravine 03:06
11.Fading Blue 02:42
12.Second Moon 03:03
13.On the Way To the Coast 03:04
Media Report:
Genre: acoustic, alternative folk
Country: USA
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits |
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