"...During our passage through the album we have encountered many changes in mood, warmth and texture, but there is no sense that these changes have been contrived, and indeed, the journey seems as pure as one may encounter on a personal level."
"...I think it is an excellent release. But there are two sides to Cousin Silas, maybe even a bit of Bipolarity going on somewhere. One one hand is the dark ambient stuff and then on the other it is guitar/keys/soundscape which are cinematic in nature but stunning musicianship on these tracks."
"A distillation of a DJ set I did in support of Gleaners - http://gleanersarchive.wordpress.com/... at Lanternhouse in Ulverston, December 2010 as part of Abandon Normal Devices Festival.Thanks Shaun! I've embedded it below if you fancy a listen.
The mix also features field recordings by Clutter."
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"A sonic suspense film, UK ambient music artist Cousin Silas’ twelfth album Canaveral Dreams (on the innovative and intriguing Acustronica label) is tremendously captivating and often absolutely creepy. It works best on good headphones, yet it’s equally good as a late-night passout album. The record label calls this stuff “dark Ballardian soundscapes,” a terrific way to describe these minimalist, nebulously cinematic pieces. Lynchian would be another way to characterize the way these soundscapes build and maintain suspense, vividly finding the menace in the mundane.../"Chilling Soundscapes by Cousin Silas Evoke J.G. Ballard and David Lynch by Lucid Culture
"For me, Cousin Silas‘ brand of ambient music is like comfort food, you know, meat loaf and potatoes, macaroni and cheese, et cetera. It’s not something I want all the time, but when I need that feeling of familiarity, there’s nothing like a nice warm slice of Cousin Silas.../"Cousin Silas – Adrift off the Islets of Langerhans by Disruptive Platypus
When I was working with Cousin Silas I sent him some initial thoughts on the tracks. I think its appropriate to post them here... to give you a flavour for the album.
1) "... and memories fade" - just like drips of rain after a rainstorm... memories fade. Beautiful Eno-esque ambience at its very best. Simple but effective. This track makes me think of the morning after a horrendous sleep... a sleep punctuated by terrible nightmares. You are slowly wakened to sunlight and the realisation that it... whatever "it" is has gone.
2) "Fresh Landscapes" - the idea that we can see something new in the ordinary. Wonderfully melancholic electronica (melancholica???)... lush synth waves that remind me of the bittersweet sensation of climbing a hill or finally arriving at an anticipated space... you have the elation that comes with seeing the new space but you also have that sense of it being over and you will have to find something new to chase.
3) "golden contrails" - I love this track. The sequencer really stirs my soul. I find it so uplifting and bright. This track is full of anticipation... the yearning of nearly being there. I see an open top jeep driving in a hot, barren landscape... the people in the car share the excitement of nearly arriving at their destination... their holiday home in the middle of nowhere. The passenger looks up and sees the contrails, bathed in sun, of the plane they were on leaving the island. The anticipation builds.
4) "Pollards Moor" - subtle and melancholy synths... reflecting the barrenness of an open moor, sparsely populated with trees. The sense of freedom and openness pervades... a quietness that is only interrupted by birds. A genuine sense of wonder.
5) "Stanedge Tunnels" - a well executed sound picture. Underground exploration. The stuff I dream about doing with my camera. Finding something abandoned and full of abandoned decay. The soundscape evokes the claustrophobia of an underground space. It is sparse... almost hidden... with sudden shocks of sound. Love it.
6) "Star Nursery" - there is a real sense of hope in this tune. a wonderful freshness. it reminds me of morning and of new life. I love when the sequencer comes in then goes almost as quickly as it arrives... almost like birdsong. Beautiful. My kind of ambient.
7) "The Tarn Cairn" - is another wonderful sound picture... very desolate and windswept. A real sense of isolation. That said... I don't feel hopeless isolation. More solitude. More well deserved space.
8) "Complexities in silence" immediately grabbed me for its haunting ambience... my kind of ambient music... lovely!
9) "Northcoates Point" gives a sense of place... a sense of being somewhere... a thin place... a place of mystery.
10) "Something landed in the forest" is just pure joy... a soundtrack to a sci-fi film. Very Delia Derbyshire in places. The atmosphere created by this track is wonderful... and a fitting last track, if indeed it is the last track.
I truly hope you will gain as much as I have from this album.
Tx
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“There are such artists that quietly create and share their works and perhaps never really surface in the wild wild world of netlabel artists.Mark Stolk (aka mystahr)
And to a certain point Cousin Silas is one of the best kept secrets under the radar, born and raised in the Colne valley of West Yorkshire, UK.
He first released in 2001 commercially through fflintcentral but quickly found the world of creative commons in 2005 with 4 releases to date on Earth Monkey productions, 4 releases on Earthrid and wandering through the netlabel world on Just not Normal, Acustronica, BFW Recordings.
As we all mature, it seems to me that through time the stronghold of Cousin Silas’ work digs deeper and has grown more subtle whilst remaining quite fragile.
Today Cousin Silas presents his 14th solo album here on Treetrunk. Continuing in the fantastic series called Complex Silence, Phillip Wilkerson brings to light a marvellous group of artists that dwell on the complexities of silence. One thing you can be sure of; this nineth complexity is one to hold dear. For Cousin Silas certainly masters this beautiful tonal silence and brings a beautiful 10 track album to set your mind off, into …..”
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Here are some thoughts on the album... provided to the man himself as feedback a few months back:Canaveral Dreams is available now from acustronica netlabel and my thanks goes to them for releasing an album I am very proud of.
001 - A Passing - Wonderfully languid... reminiscent of Eno... an excellent opener – sets the tone for the album.
002 - From A Dark Lighthouse Parts 1, 2 & 3 - Expertly crafted soundscape... gives me “mind pictures” of the sea. Haunting... in a more unfamiliar than scary kind of way.
003 - Crane At Train Station - My kind of ambience... beautifully subtle & relaxed yet well formed and melodious with a sense of brightness... a joyful moment... like seeing a massive crane in the Motherwell Train Station carpark (the track was inspired by one of my photos).
004 - The Decay Of Concrete - Another wonderful soundscape... very much reminiscent of your “Ballardian” work... but not necessarily as dark. More empty and unknown than dark. I see old disused concrete tunnels that whilst abandoned and forgotten by their makers retain a mystique to a new breed of urban explorers with cameras.
005 - Sawney Hill - There is an openness about this track that is truly delightful... coupled with a sense of the grand. As if you've reached your destination and you are taking in the panoramic view for the first time.
006 - Black Mold - Disturbing and disorientating... a sense of panic in the dark. Intimidating but not quite overwhelming.
007 - Canaveral Dreams - A sense of awe and a feeling of size & proportion... like look towards something grand, inspiring and yet intimidating. Like the feeling of walking into the cathedrals of old or seeing the scientific marvels of now... like a rocket about to launch from its dock. Maybe even seeing the Earth from space.
008 - To The Other Side - A sense of coming and going... waves of the sea on sand... that leads to an awakening... a dawning of a new day... like the dark is darkest just before the dawn and then when dawn comes all that concerned us is forgotten in the warmth of the sun.
009 - Arriving Home - The anticipation builds... is felt in the repetition of a heartbeat. Everything passes by in a blur as the focus is placed on the singular moment of arrival... even holding our breath as we near.
010 - Concrete Towers - I see the sun glinting and flaring off towers... I see my photos of the sun playing peek-a-boo... with a sense of calm and peace. A sense that the sun is there... and keeps shining. Regardless of our bleak and empty surroundings there is still light and beauty.
011 - Time Lapse Crash - Scene 7 - Very powerfully evocative soundscape... I can visualise the crash referred to in title.
012 - Whitefield Pits - The feeling of walking in a darkened cave or tunnel... the drips from the roof creating an eerie yet reassuring sound.
013 - First Night - The sense of sleeping rough or in a tent... in the middle of an unknown and threatening space. Very much a feeling of restlessness in the dark as a result of all thats going on outside... unseen yet heard... in the blackness.
014 - Through Glittering Trees - There is something wonderfully rhythmic in the melody. Simple and joyous.
015 - Out There - Something foreboding... in the dark. A wonderful end to another awesome album.
If you like ambient electronica then please check this album out. Truly fantastic.
