Lowering one’s voice brings with it silence or the most dulcet of natural tones. Gone is the machine intervention of the spoken word, instead we rely on metaphorical, intermittent, and the absolute actions that are as such less forced and more natural forces of the natural world. A more biological sound that is ready to spill from silence’s crepuscular crevices. Let it grow, let it grow.
This new record by High Aura’d & Josh Mason maps itself as soundscape-only material. Touchstones like Tim Hecker and Kevin Drumm are relevant here. The sound is enwombing and partially frail, like a dessert handkerchief unknown on the dining table the night before. “Silver”, for example, the lead track in the promotional material, dates itself in tremors of white noise, an amoeba in a busy queue of bacteria. A full and absorbing adventure, it’s a cut that deserves your full attention upon its crest.
Texturally, there’s much to praise. The tones are rich and full of life, yet life itself brings with it the weariness of time. While some elements are strong in tracks such as “Silver”, the bookends of the album are a lot more ebbing and flowing; pick a thread of feedback and you can imagine what is about to happen. The quality: it’s just one of those records – the brevity of the music speaks for itself here. What I can comment on, having listened to the complete album a few times through, is that this is a new sound. However, I really like this as a more drone-oriented person.