Articles
Death Blues
Questionnaire II

Albums
36
Daniel Bachman
Blevin Blectum
Ulises Conti
Ian William Craig
Dakota Suite & Sirjacq
Death Blues
Yair Etziony
Fade
Hammock
Imagho & Mocke
Kassel Jaeger
John Kannenberg
Martin Kay
Kein
Kontakt der Jünglinge
Akira Kosemura
Land Observations
Klara Lewis
Oliver Lieb
Lightfoils
Machinefabriek
Nikkfurie of La Caution
Pitre and Allen
Pjusk
Michael Robinson
Sawako
Seasurfer
Slow Dancing Society
Tender Games
Tirey / Weathers
Tohpati
Tokyo Prose
The Void Of Expansion
wild Up
Yodok III
Russ Young

Compilations / Mixes
Dessous Sum. Grooves 2
Silence Was Warm Vol. 5
Under The Influence Vol. 4

EPs / Cassettes / Mini-Albums / Singles
Belle Arché Lou
Blind EP3
Blocks and Escher
Dabs
DBR UK
Fracture
Sunny Graves
Ligovskoï
Mako
Paradox & Nucleus
Pye Corner Audio
Sawa & Kondo
Slpwlkr
Swoon
Toys in The Well
Versa
Marshall Watson

Land Observations: The Grand Tour
Mute

Form and content seamlessly converge on James Brooks's latest Land Observations opus The Grand Tour. Pitched as an imaginary travelogue through Western, Central, and Southern Europe and recorded using nothing more than one electric six-string guitar, the forty-one-minute set convincingly conveys impressions of restless movement and exploration. The music alone earns the release its recommendation, but the project appeals also for the simplicity of its production approach. With the album's eight tracks presented in a warm analogue sound, Brooks shows, like others before him, that in the right hands a guitar is all that's needed. Inspired by the example of John Fahey and the artists on his Takoma label, Brooks came to realize that, in his own words, “a solo guitar could fill the sound.”

The Grand Tour isn't the debut recording by the one-time Appliance member, as it was preceded by an initial Land Observations EP for Enraptured Records and 2012's Roman Roads IV-XI full-length. The music's powerfully evocative character might also derive from the keen visual sense he developed in earning a Masters degree in Fine Art and as an exhibiting artist in galleries in London, Frankfurt, and Paris. In keeping with the historical meaning associated with the title, specifically the idea of an extensive and culturally rich trip undertaken by well-off university graduates, the album frames the journey with pieces devoted to departure and return. Along the way, flatlands and mountain passes are traversed, and cities such as Nice, Turin, Vienna, and Florence visited.

The trip doesn't begin on a lazy note but rather one charged with eagerness and optimism, as illustrated by the forward thrust of “On Leaving the Kingdom for the Well-Tempered Continent.” Here and elsewhere, Brooks generates multiple layers from his gear, such that spidery patterns form a metronomic foundation for the pastoral melodies threaded overtop. Adding to the music's range of moods and timbral richness, Brooks accentuates contrast between the layers, such that a low-pitched pattern assumes a supporting, bass-like role whereas others of a higher pitch function as lead voices.

With London behind us, “Flatlands and the Flemish Roads” sees the journey picking up speed—the flat terrain allowing for unimpeded movement—before the pace slows for a careful ascent (“From the Heights of the Simpson Pass”) that brings with it melancholic reflection. “Ode to Viennese Streets” is understandably earmarked by a pronounced ornate quality that suggests a visitor admiring the baroque style of the city's buildings. After time spent “Walking the Warm Colonnades,” we “Return to Ravenna,” refreshed from the trip and suitably informed about the sights seen.

August-September 2014