Colours of Air Loscil Artist

Given their shared brilliance at creating deeply layered ambient music, a collaboration between {|Loscil|}'s {|Scott Morgan|} and {|Lawrence English|} was inevitable. That {|Colours of Air|} continues themes they've pursued individually feels downrig... Read more

Given their shared brilliance at creating deeply layered ambient music, a collaboration between {|Loscil|}'s {|Scott Morgan|} and {|Lawrence English|} was inevitable. That {|Colours of Air|} continues themes they've pursued individually feels downright serendipitous. A set of pieces using source material from a 19th century pipe organ and named for the colors they evoke, the project is in keeping with {|Morgan|}'s explorations of imagery and light on {|Equivalents|} and {|Clara|} and with {|English|}'s use of the organ on over a decade's worth of albums. In fact, the Australian composer/writer/curator considers the pieces he's created with the instrument -- which is housed in Brisbane's Old Museum and allows for remarkably slow tonal shifts -- collaborations in their own right, with results spanning 2014's formidable {|Wilderness of Mirrors|} to the almost subliminal moments on 2021's {|Observation of Breath|}. Together, he and {|Morgan|} create a rainbow's worth of cohesive yet distinctive tracks honoring the organ's ability to shape the air with tones ranging from soft to all-consuming. Though {|Colours of Air|}'s concept could easily result in anodyne washes of sound, {|Morgan|} and {|English|} push themselves beyond choices that are merely aesthetic or soothing. Aqua, one of the album's most unabashedly pretty pieces, features what sounds like an almost unadulterated organ floating in the background -- until it dips and swells like it's been pressed by a tremolo bar. Contrasted with the breath-like tones in the foreground, it makes for a striking fusion of ambient and shoegaze techniques that's equally sweet and eerie. More often, though, {|Colours of Air|} is surprisingly taut. Juxtaposing light, piano-like tones, flickering pulses, and a rolling low end, Yellow is one of the most characteristically {|Loscil|} tracks thanks to its delicate tension and subtle melodic sensibility. On Grey, {|Morgan|} and {|English|} ratchet up the intensity, creating gentle but relentless discordance that, in its own way, generates as much unease as {|English|}'s {|Merzbow|} collaboration {|Infinite Stalker|}. Here and on {|Colours of Air|}'s other highlights, the duo stirs up powerful moods that frequently allude to the organ's sacred connotations. The deep, warming drones and softly glimmering waves of the centerpiece, Black, conjure a calming stillness that feels full of potential, like looking up at the night sky -- or deep within. Pink may be named for one of the softest colors, but its penetrating tones and massive spaces radiate awe-inspiring heaviness. Fascinating sound design heightens the album's almost visual quality, particularly on Violet, which juggles dramatic bursts of sound, loping, insistent percussion, and pensive washes gracefully. A meeting of the minds that will satisfy and excite fans of either or both artists, {|Colours of Air|} is a testament to {|Morgan|} and {|English|}'s artistry that grows richer with each listen. ~ Heather Phares Less