Talk Amongst The Trees

Matthew Cooper (aka Eluvium) has released one album per year now for the past three years, and they don't always fall into a neat cubbyhole. His first album Lambent Material showed a couple very strong cards in terms of ambient electronic music, while his follow-up of Accidental Memory In Case Of Death moved in completely different directions as a short release of improvisational piano pieces that was hit or miss in terms of quality but still managed to show something new from the young artist.

Talk Amongst The Trees moves back in the direction of the first release from Cooper, and in terms of overall flow and composition it's light-years beyond his first release. With eight tracks that run almost an hour in length, it's also much more grand in scope, and while some pieces probably run a smidge long, the overall effect of the album is lovely. The album opens with the soft haze of "New Animals From The Air" as delayed guitar loops drift over warm washes of sound for almost twelve minutes. "Show Us Our Homes" again feels right at home on a bed of clouds as wafts of backwards guitar and rounded-off feedback form a semi-transparent fog of sound.

The middle section of the album is easily the strongest, and it's because of tracks like "Everything To Come," in which the soft squalls of feedback seem to mingle with each other in just the right ways while the almost seventeen-minute epic of "Taken" induces trancelike behavior with its simple but highly effective guitar arpeggio that seems to climb and climb without ever really going anywhere. The beauty of the latter track is one of simplicity, but the suggested movement of the track (through subtle builds in the background layers of the track) is what keeps the listener involved.

While most tracks on the release are content to drift and wander through different variations on the same sorts of fuzzy, flickering themes, it's also a comforting release that works so well because it doesn't break out of the hypnotic spell that it sets for itself from the beginning. While Lambent Material had a couple amazing tracks, it was also somewhat inconsistent in terms of overall sonics and how it progressed. This newest release doesn't have that problem at all, as it continues through the same, slightly blurry realm during the entire running length of the album. There aren't a lot of surprises, but there aren't any letdowns either. If you like your ambient music shimmering, this is the album for you.

(from almost cool music reviews)

If ambient music is your thing or if you enjoy long, drawn-out and beautiful soundscapes, than the new Eluvium is for you and will most likely end up being one of your favorite albums of the year. I don't know how this guy manages to release an album a year but I hope he keeps the pace.

I don't typically buy 'nice things'. I'm a fledgling graduate student that frowns at the bits of iron that scrape off of my pots and into my Mac 'n Chez with each use. However, last summer I used a bonus to buy some new Bose headphones as a treat to myself, and this was the first album I wanted to test them with. This is one of -those- albums.

To be honest, I can only name 2-3 songs titles off the top of my head and probably wouldn't be able to put the tracks in their proper order. I think that emphasizes the fact that this piece does not grip you in a particular moment and make you replay that last song necessarily.

This album would be in my personal top ten, though. The repetitive waves of droning guitar recall the haze-ensconced cover art, which is hard to separate as a visual representation of the music. It has been my experience that whatever is wresting your thoughts, Eluvium is able to assuage any neural cacophony.

While I think it a bit strong to refer to a CD as a 'spiritual experience', I would be lying if I said I didn't ever find my mind wandering into certain philosophical realms when 'One' comes on my iPod.

So if you're looking for something to put on when you're typing up that report simply as a non-invasive background accompaniment or you're going on a solo hiking excursion in the Andes, I would recommend you give this a whirl.

RIYL: Plume, And Their Refinement of the Decline

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