Rūmĭnor-Flew Mirrored on the Water review. FFO:Atmospheric melancholic drone.

 

Rūmĭnor-Flew Mirrored on the Water review. FFO:Atmospheric melancholic drone.

Here's the bio:
Rūmĭnor, a new experimental, instrumental collaborative project, was formed by Namazu, Sam Haven, and Saleeha. Predicated on a mutual appreciation for each other’s individual outputs; Namazu, known for ambient guitar work, spoken word samples, and locational recording, Sam Haven, a multi-instrumentalist, and electronic music producer, and Saleeha, a guitar based, experimental composer. Rūmĭnor was born from the concept of “What if?” – What could we create working together for the first time, specifically writing an album to be recorded with the boundaries and parameters of a chosen studio? Material was worked on over a 6 month period and the result "Flew Mirrored On The Water" was recorded and mixed over two days by Chris Townsend at Frying Pan Studios, housed within the iconic MONA (Museum of New and Old Art) in Hobart, Australia. This debut is an exploration of nature, existence, and contemplation through a unique blend of ambient, post-rock, electronic, and neo-classical music.

This thoughtful and brilliant release is a fantastic by-product of artists with sharp skills and a deep understanding of the emotive tone of music. Over the four tracks, you get a fairly grim, low-tempo ambient drone with a post-rock underpinning. It's 40 minutes of unrestrained, free-form instrumental bliss that seems like a soundtrack to a dystopian film. 


Definitely some flavours of Godspeed You! Black Emperor as well as Mogwai; and leaning deep into the less uplifting tracks of those legends. Like all great instrumental music, it leads one into less genric song structure and one where the mood play is key. Each subtle use of every instrument is placed there for a reason, to build on the tension or self-reflective atmosphere. More a headphone piece than a loudspeaker focus unless you lived in a cabin in some Scandinavian forest etc. Opening track Wings at the Precipice is very much a stark beckoning window into what the band is enticing the listener with. Bit by bit the additional strings and keys, or even subtle bass notes drip feed you a promise, like a walk into a cloudy hike into a forest. Nothing is rushed or pushed onto your ears, here's a crumb; now take that and ponder. The guitar work is brilliant on this, eerie and daunting. Whilst the track is almost 14 minutes duration, I found myself blown away by the subtle chill of this track.

Light Fell Through the Air follows, another stunning composition of menacing drone and impending dread or doom. The second half of the track is immense with the twisting notes of a faraway sound that threatens to caress or send you into paranoia. Fire Repel Until the End builds on the tension and it is almost as though the first two tracks piece by piece build into the crux of the non-existent film it is set to. This track would be for a jaw-dropping relevation that floors you, just like the music. The grim and mellow blend perfectly, whilst creating an atmosphere of both yearning and macabre disposition. The wonder of this band/project is every song has such refined and intelligent intricacies that are bleak and purposeful-this is what crafted composition is about.

My Body Will Move Across The Earth closes out the release with rich guitar tones, textured cinematic excess and a flowing emotional drain that I adored.
The four tracks are bleak, gorgeous and murky to the point of meditative psychosis. This is a groundbreaking release because if you like this music, you will be strangled by its melodic yet dire grip.

Brilliant and essential.

 
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