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Emeralds, "Solar Bridge"
The content of this CD was a surprise. From the sleeve art, the record label and the picture of the band on the back, I was expecting harsh noise. Instead my ears were greeted with the most wonderful electronic murmurs. The two pieces here set my mind adrift on an ocean of warm synthesiser undercurrents and waves of gentle guitar. The feelings this music elicits bring to mind the sheer beauty of Stars of the Lid but with a stronger, denser sound.
“Magic” lives up to its title; the shifting pulses shimmering in stereo, the sounds moving at different speeds with dizzying effect. The piece is reminiscent of Coil’s Time Machines, the drones almost stalling time and provide a platform for vivid daydreaming one second (if a second still had meaning) before utterly capturing my attention the next. Although only 12 minutes long, “Magic” stretches out time to the point where the concept of minutes and seconds means nothing. The piece’s very existence makes the need for time unnecessary. However, having said that, 12 minutes is really not enough.
The second of the two pieces, “The Quaking Mess,” is a slightly busier piece. Like the previous piece, there are sustained tones and drones that flow through the piece but unlike the previous track, there are pulsing and twinkling sounds (the guitar is more prominent here than before) that make it more obvious to the listener. I can still get lost between the sounds but the feeling of reality dissolving around me is not as strong. Instead reality seems to expand, becoming larger than life.
Both of these pieces are immensely satisfying, Emeralds tap into the sounds masterfully and it is hard to believe that three men on synths and a guitar made this beautiful music. It sounds like it was plucked from the cosmos, filtered from the ether or decanted from heaven (take your pick of supernatural metaphor). It will be interesting to see where Emeralds go from here. Solar Bridge is more than just promising.
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