Northern Earth is a fully instrumental, sprawling and contemplative sound journey of minimalist, solitary-mood pieces which deserve patience and spiritual disposition.
Mystical devotion and cinematic splendor
Dean McPhee is a sound artist and a guitarist apart from restricted stylistic categories. His musical production spans more than a decade with steady releases on some obscure indie labels. His last efforts have been released under his own publishing structure: Bass Ritual. Released in 2011, his album for Blast First Petite (owned by Paul Smith of Mute) is unfortunately the only one I got familiar with, but I will definitely try to correct this lack of knowledge. Comparing this older work with the new offer, we might say that McPhee rapidly found his musical path back then, mixing with skills, spirit and evocativeness a chilling emotional psychedelic folk mantra with hypnotic looped effects obtained with guitars.
Northern Earth follows a relatively similar path, with an emphasis on repetitive and ritualized guitar-centered soundscapes of heavenly and spiritual beauty behind more raw textured motifs. In a way, it reminds me of lonesome krautrockin’ excursions from the 70s with Popol Vuh, Ash Ra Tempel, or even Fripp/Eno lyergic grooves (in the self-titled track), but here the whole thing embraces a sense of existential wandering, natural vastness, mystical devotion and cinematic splendor.
Rolling percussive pulses and nuanced effects ::
The guitar is generally soaked in a heavy pack of reverbs, also turning on slightly relaxing slide style, alternating sinuous textures with moody-esque repetitive melodies that will lead you in a beatific state. Rare sound objects, rolling percussive pulses and nuanced effects punctuate the body of tracks.
I must say it is a welcoming surprise and a break from the too ambient-ish electronic efforts I reviewed recently. Absolutely recommended for fans of Cosmic Americana (as a musical subgenre), Pan•American, Stars of the Lid, Labradford, Saadé. It would have made a nice soundtrack for some road movies and slow-moving western-themed films by Jim Jarmusch or Kelly Reichardt in Meek’s Cutoff’
Northern Earth is a fully instrumental, sprawling and contemplative sound journey of minimalist, solitary-mood pieces which deserve patience and spiritual disposition.
Northern Earth is available on Bass Ritual. [Bandcamp]
