En

Already Gone

A universal definition of what is “beautiful” will probably remain eternally elusive. Different tastes, different cultures, backgrounds and a myriad of other factors play into how one person’s perception of beauty differs from the next. That said, it would be difficult to imagine anyone listening to the opening minutes of En’s sophomore effort, bask in the swelling layers of sound and not feel totally surrounded by the sublime, the utterly beautiful.

Processed fields of digital ambience wash down upon the listener, guided thoughtfully by the clear bass notes of The Drift’s Trevor Montgomery, notes appear and sounds reveal themselves from underneath the veils of opener “Lodi”, which at two minutes long is a fraction of what most ambient/experimental artists put out, yet equally effective. The presence of bass guitar remains in the following track, and the fact that its inclusion works so well makes one wonder, why aren’t more artists who dwell in the limitless fields of ambience using bass in their mix? Its effect is enamoring, like a constant link between the heavens and earth, making the pristine worlds created by the reverb laden soundscapes appear more tangible. They turn from places that exist solely in dreams and fantasies to ones where you can actually reside and immerse yourself within. The bass notes, however scarce they might be, add that effect perfectly. It is extremely simple yet absolutely brilliant. I want more bass in my ambient from now on!

The rest of the album doesn’t stray far from the opening tracks in terms of quality or mood. “Already Gone” keeps going strong and the duo of Maxwell August Croy and James Devane continuously show that there is more to drone or ambient music than tons of reverb. They are able to mix things up, but do so ever so subtly, the koto plucks which bring to mind Nest’s best work, the jagged drones laid down to utmost effect amidst other layers in a manner that would make Richard Skelton proud. It’s all so thoughtfully done and keeps the listener completely locked in throughout the album’s length.

Thoughtful instrumentation and an eye for all that’s pretty won’t cut it though, I mean sure it’s gorgeous, but there’s more than the fair share of ambient musicians out there treading along these same lines. What cuts it, what seals the deal, hits a home run, touches down and does a triple backward somersault, is an ear for melody. What has always differentiated the everyday sound artist from those who excel at it, in my humble opinion at least, is melody. This might sound old fashioned, but nothing warms my heart more, especially one that has all these beautifying elements in the background, and that is exactly what makes album closer, “Elysia”, work so wonderfully.

At a little over nineteen minutes, longer than the four previous tracks combined, “Elysia” is naturally the one track which ultimately makes or breaks the album. It is the moment where the listener is faced with a more concrete, longer lasting thought rather than snippets of emotion and it shows En’s abilities at their highest; Here we have an emotional mass that provides an alluring gravitational pull, the introduction of piano, followed by psychedelic arps and synths make way for a vast field of quietude ending with sparse toy piano notes that fall away quietly into nothingness. We’ve reached the end and get a bigger picture of the effort the artists have put into constructing the compositions, it’s a trip through the details rather than a postcard of the overall result. En take us through the express route in the first half of the album and then back via the scenic route and both work marvelously.

Whether or not “Already Gone” would remain in my personal rotation for many months to come is something that I can’t tell for sure at the moment, but what I am sure of is that for the time I spent with it, I loved it deeply and if I am to take a souvenir with me it would have to be second track “The Sea Saw Swell”. That Bass!!!

The Absent Coast

En is the duo of San Francisco based multi-instrumentalists Maxwell August Croy and James Devane, and “The Absent Coast” is their debut collection of recordings... The instrumentation used on the outing is diverse – koto, guitar, vocals, Rhodes, melodica, piano. Clearly the instruments are processed, but without stripping the original analogue or organic texture from the tones. Listening to the drones on the record, it’s hard to dismiss them into the background or forget them as part of the furniture – you can visualise hands tracing chord shapes or fingers on keys; a tactility engages. The format is well established, but there are occasional flourishes that surprise and distinguish – the feedback in the first track ‘A Dying Sun/Return to Holyoke’ is an eyebrow raiser in a good way. The tropes here are not groundbreaking, but it is reassuring to see them deployed in such a confident manner early on. In that regard, a great opening number. Some of the background texture in the second track ‘Mother Of Thousands’ is a touch more demanding, but the blare of the organ counterbalances it nicely.

Title track ‘The Absent Coast’ is a good third track breather, and brings to mind a picture I got a lot of the way through the record – it’s “glassy”. Easy to imagine a lot of bright light refracted through, or reflected off, stained or clear glass. A very visible spectrum of colour. I was not at all surprised to see Boomkat had also dropped the “glass” reference in their review for the record too, which highlighted ‘Honeysuckle Heart’ as an album strong point. That it is, but also brief at a shade over two minutes. ‘Miramar’ is a more respectable length, and is a perfect example of what’s right with this record. Really interesting tones juxtaposed with conventional layering and a strong melodic and emotional base.

‘Polaris (The Celestial Arc)’ is considerably more subdued, with a focus on bottom end hum that becomes an off kilter melody. ‘Ghosts’ is a low-key bridging piece that ties the two tracks that border it well. ‘Biezumd’ stirs curiosity – how DID they get that sound, and how is it looping in such a way? An intelligent soundscape that becomes a distant pulsing melody. ‘Maboroshi’ has a very coastal tinge, with distant key parts invoking the nostalgia that the press release harkens to. ‘Pratyaya’ is the most notable use of vocals on the record, and is a shimmering, pitched up Gregorian chant – floating on mercury. A fitting close.

Very high quality stuff, as you’d expect from a Root Strata release, and fits solidly into the catalogue that they are renowned for. The release appears to be available now, in a run of 300 LP’s.

The Third Chapter

'The 3rd Chapter EP' is the first release from eN, a budding laptop musician from London, currently studying Music Informatics in Brighton. Pairing the alluring qualities of atmospheric breaks and harsh edited Jungle rhythms with washed out synthetic soundscapes and deep bass, it walks the line between the tranquil and intense.

A founding partner of the No-Test collective and the infamous Erisian Discharge night’s, eN has been an up and coming force to watch out for, for some time now. Creating his tunes in code using the venerable SuperCollider and already commending a sizeable back catalogue of jungle anthems and mashup breaks he's revered for his dance floor killas and live experimental laptop mashup’s, playing alongside acts such as Remarc, Doormouse, Drop The Lime, Mathhead, Tester, Debaser, Murderbot, Shitmat and Tim Exile.

• 2006 - The Third Chapter - 320 Kbps
• 2010 - The Absent Coast - 320 Kbps
• 2012 - Already Gone - 320 Kbps
• 2012 - Blood [with Jefre Cantu-Ledesma] - 320 Kbps

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