What a beauty. The gorgeous, endlessly inventive new album, from Rival Consoles, aka Ryan Lee West, invokes a kind of synaesthesia: you can almost hear colours. It’s textured, layer upon layer, like a kind of complex tromp l’oeil painting in sound. Tracks like ‘Catherine’, ‘Known Shapes’ and the stunning, shimmering ‘Soft Gradient Beckons’ appear like otherworldly alien sighs.
The beauty here is that of the unknown, an enigma that’s hard to fathom but easy to emotionally engage with, sonically landing somewhere between Aphex Twin at his dreamiest, and Brian Eno in melancholy mode. In short, it’s tentative analogue synth music with heart and soul, for an unshakeable belief in some kind of better days. We can all use a musical panacea like this, now more than ever.
Out via Erased Tapes on July 4th.
Hit The North 
wow. what a review. I can only hope someone feels that way about my music someday.
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Thanks. I’m sure someone will say something every bit as complimentary. 😊
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