Will Samson – Ground Luminosity
This morning I’ve just picked up this new one on Talitres by Will Samson and already have a sense that this will be ranking high amongst my favourite records of the year. There’s a stark sadness to it which will be perfect for the colder months ahead and there’s a great use of variety in the sound content. Samson starts things off with ‘Tumble‘ which begins with a gentle plucked guitar line which opens up to lo-fi electronic beats, wailing Hawaiian style guitar and mournful strings. It is an instrumental piece and is a breathtakingly beautiful way to start an album. ‘Sunbeamer Pt I‘ is the next of the 8 pieces to ‘Ground Luminosity‘ and is the first glimpse of Samson’s vocals – these sit atop languid, muddied guitar drones. Again, strings join the mix along with some shattered IDM beats. ‘Flow The Moon‘ starts again with some beautifully lazy guitar chords are joined by fractured plucked guitar and Samson’s voice, which may remind you a little of Patrick Watson. The title track refreshes the palette; an instrumental of tape-saturated piano and gentle cymbal crashes.
‘Pyrton Bells‘ begins with a field recording, church bells and a deep, sleepy drone. It is then joined by glitchy beats low in the mix as Samson sings. The synths wail and haunt as the song draws out its crescendo. The album is now in its final stages in terms of the number of tracks, but Samson has selected three longer 6+ minutes tracks to draw out the send off. ‘When I Was A Mountain‘ is icy cold organ haunts, vocals and bass as well as some light noise and reverb-effected snare drums. ‘Suspended In‘ is the longest track on Ground Luminosity and is a beautiful drone as Samson strives to suspend and elongate this beautiful record. The strings return towards the end and are truly triumphant, enlightening and inspiring. If you listen to everything in sequence, these are magical moments. ‘Night Canyon‘ draws things to a close, opening with fragile electro-acoustic guitar moving to strings and vocals.
This is a very strong record that we’ll be returning to regularly over the winter months – we can’t recommend it highly enough. To grab a copy, click HERE or on the image above.
