Magic Realism

Johnny Marr has announced his first solo album in nearly four years. Dubbed Call the Comet, it’s slated for arrival on June 15th through New Voodoo.

Hans Zimmer's melancholy yet romantic The House of the Spirits captures the magic realism of Isabel Allende's source novel with a clarity absent from the accompanying film adaptation. Accenting his brooding synthesizers and ghostly strings with elements of South American music, the composer brings to life the tragic downfall of an aristocratic Chilean family with uncommonly poignant precision. Zimmer confronts head-on the human suffering at the heart of the film, and at times his richly textured themes seem to marinate in sadness. He never stoops to heart-tugging pathos or histrionics, however, instead instilling The House of the Spirits with a dignity perfectly matched to its characters.

Is it possible that Tim Dwyer’s Off Land project, like fine wine, just keeps getting better with age? You bet. In fact, if there were any justice in the world, Off Land’s name would be up there in lights alongside colleagues Brennan, Global Communication, Eno, Froese, Orb, et al. The man’s surely paid his dues at this point, for his catalog is now one of formidable prowess; one thing he doesn’t lack is ingenuity, for there’s hardly a duff note amongst it. This latest missive for Carpe Sonum is a beautifully minted thing, its electronics cascading off a million reflective surfaces in starbursts of colors every bit as prismatic as the multi-layered synthesizer lines sporting them. Look no farther than the spiraling miasmatic sequencers of “Weathered Patterns”, which sets up its own ecosystem of immersive atmosphere, like riding abreast the silkiest little fluffy clouds imaginable. “Granular Shore” does it one better, a percolating analog bubblebath within which whispery, mellotron-like filters open to reveal all sorts of wondrous beings and their strangely shifting sounds dancing the light fantastic.

Offered at auction with no reserve, serial number 0940 from Classic Records limited edition Deluxe 1S Edition set of audiophile grade re-issues of 10 RCA Living Stereo LPs. The sound quality of these Classic Records re-issues is legendary. All 10 LPs are brand new, still in the original sealed outer sleeves. Each bears a serial number label as on the box, showing the number 0940.