Journeys in Sound & Music
Blue Lake is the moniker chosen by multidisciplinary artist Jason Dungan for his instrumental music project. A self-taught musician born in America and currently based in Denmark, Dungan has spent time freely experimenting with self-built instruments, such as his own hybrid 48-string zither, which he blends with percussion, woodwinds, and other stringed instruments to create…
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Wickerbird is the atmospheric dream-folk project of Blake Cowan rooted in the sylvan beauty of the wild foothills of Mt. Rainier where it all began. From early albums like The Crow Mother (2012) and The Westering (2013) to the masterful The Leaf Maker (2015), he has carved his own path by distilling daydream-filled walks in the…
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Canadian composer & multi-instrumentalist Cédric Dind-Lavoie reaches back through time to find a very special group of collaborators for his first full-length release since the wonderful 88 (2018, Preserved Sound). Archives is a specially treated anthology of songs from the 40s and 50s that have been drawn from the collections of distinguished folklorists of the…
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Having grown up in a small coastal city in Sweden, Sofia Nystrand, aka Vargkvint, drew on a strong personal bond with the ocean when she created her album Hav (2019, piano and coffee records). Masterfully combining elements of neoclassical and folk music with haunting vocals and a vivid sense of storytelling, she wove a spellbinding…
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A musical edgeland where ambient and modern classical minimalism co-exists with acoustic, folk, electronics, and field recordings…
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However long it takes to put this seemingly interminable pandemic in the rear view mirror, one day down the road we will get the chance to look back fondly on the bright spots of kindness, creativity, and friendship that illuminated the darker times. But that does not mean we can’t savor them now where we…
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It was exactly a year ago that Sofia Nystrand aka Vargkint released her concept album about the sea entitled Hav on Piano and Coffee Records (readers may remember the premiere of the haunting ballad “Drivved” on these pages last spring). Since then, Nystrand has developed a newfound interest in making stop motion films and marks…
Read MoreThe very name of the band Tomorrow We Sail evokes an aura of journeys into far off horizons full of promise, an apt metaphor for the creative odyssey the Leeds-based band has been on since their formation in 2009. Their 2014 debut, For Those Who Caught The Sun In Flight, was the culmination of four…
Read MoreWhat exactly is “cinematic folk”? A good way to answer that question would be to have a listen to Landscapes, the latest solo release by Oakland-based composer, producer, & multi-instrumentalist Jacob Montague. The album, which flows more like a suite than a collection of songs, oozes pastoral charm with scene-setting atmospheres and a strong narrative flow propelled…
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Stationary Travels 