Listen to Ochre, but take heed, traveler—this soundtrack to your ambient journey demands vigilance, lest you fall victim to its charms. Keep a steady Eye to Windward and be wary of its siren song.
Ambient electronic music that sets the table for a delicious auditory voyage
On An Eye to Windward, Christopher Leary turns in a contemplative, engaging set of ambient electronic music that sets the table for a delicious auditory voyage. The pieces swing from uplifting, melodic tracks like the aptly-named “Rising Tide” to darker, ominous drones like the one that opens “A Current Under Sea,” but despite the range of moods on offer, there’s a consistent through-line of emotional expression and nautical imagery that connects the disparate tracks. Fans of Ochre’s more beat-driven work, going back to 2004’s A Midsummer Nice Dream, might be disappointed at the absence of the intricate percussive elements of those releases, but I’d suggest giving this album a chance on its own merits.
An Eye to Windward is best taken as a whole, so rather than run it down track-by-track, I want this write-up to convey the overall feeling or vibe of the set and highlight a few standout moments. For example, the deceptively gentle, slow build in “Evacuation” just serves to put the listener off balance for its gritty, harsh climax. “Parinherm,” by contrast, presents a series of swelling synths, like long-rolling surfer curls, that build and recede over the song’s duration; it’s absolutely beautiful to behold. The nautical theme binds these pieces together, both in the titles and the shifting, chimerical nature of the music presented. Earth’s waters, our origin and essence, motivate these compositions—”Fata Morgana,” while not sporting a water-related title, presents a sonic picture evocative of the final submarine scene in Wes Anderson’s A Life Aquatic: a bit twee, resonant bell tones distant, as if submerged, but ultimately uplifting and joyous.
Listen to Ochre, but take heed, traveler—this soundtrack to your ambient journey demands vigilance, lest you fall victim to its charms. Keep a steady Eye to Windward and be wary of its siren song.
An Eye to Windward is available on Bandcamp.
