Daniel Avery – Together In Static (LP Red Vinyl)
The album opens with ‘Crystal Eyes’, five minutes of the aforementioned ethereal droning ambience to set the scene. The celestial pads and sombre bass-tones would certainly make for a transformative experience if witnessed live in the awe-inspiring St John’s Church, with its towering stained-glass windows facing off against a gargantuan church organ. As this intro fades to a soothing close, ‘Yesterday Fades’ immediately announces its arrival with lumbering industrial kick drums signifying a sharp change of mood and pace. The ethereal ambience is soon reintroduced though, floating high above the mix. It’s this juxtaposition of gossamer-light textures with pummelling tribal percussion that defines much of Avery’s current phase — and can’t help but call to mind early-90s Richard D James releases such as the Caustic Window LP or Analogue Bubblebath series.
There are several tracks more tracks on Together in Static that also recall this formative era. The uplifting synths and muted beats of ‘Nowhere Sound’ are arguably simplistic but, along with cuts like ‘A Life That is Your Own’ and ‘Hazel and Gold’, are unashamedly lovely. It all comes across like no-strings-attached feel good music, full of the same optimism and weary euphoria of the halcyon days of the early-90s. Maybe some would accuse Avery of cheesiness (or laziness) for revisiting this already very well-mined seam of electronic music’s golden age, but given the circumstances of the live performance that birthed this project, surely we all need a bit of a boost? By all accounts, Daniel Avery is dynamite live and no doubt when he’s back and playing in the flesh to a room full of sweating bodies, he’ll shed some of the expansive melodies in favour of more balls-to-the-wall kick-drum-fuelled intensity.
In spite of its many strong moments, taken as a whole Together in Static feels like a bit of a stopgap — the precursor to something more. And Avery has hinted as much on social media, with a teasing reference to this being “just the beginning”. Although it’s a tight, cohesive album that continues seamlessly where Love + Light left off, it doesn’t really offer anything new. But I mean that as no criticism. As the three-second vocal snippet towards the end of the album declares, “Hope comes in many forms”. And for better or worse, the UK is now emerging from the static of the last 15 months, blinking in the sunlight and unsure of what lies ahead. Together in Static is Avery’s document from this strange time and feels like a neat encapsulation of the feelings – hope, uncertainty, anticipation – shared by anyone who’s looking forward to experiencing their next concert/rave/gig not through a laptop screen but live and in the flesh.
Label: Phantasy Sound – PHLP14
Country: USA & Europe
Media Condition: Mint (M)
Sleeve Condition: Mint (M)
Sealed