Matthew Cardinal/Elsewhere
Matthew Cardinal
Asterisms // Arts & Crafts
Yes, it would be stating the obvious to say that we are currently living in a stressful time. Doomscrolling. Civil Unrest. Anxiety about Anxiety. I could go on and on and you already know all of this. Wouldn’t it be nice to briefly pause the outrage and the chaos and listen to some droning synth chords mixed with easy, delicate sounds that propel you to a place of calm serenity the second you close your eyes?
This record is a gentle reminder that there is still a place for healing and peace in the world. Make more time for things like this record. Put it on a decent sound system if you can. Lie down somewhere comfortable where you can rest your body. Close your eyes. Breath deeply. Be transported.
Exquisite ambient happens when you try to completely free music from melody, chord progressions, and rhythm to focus entirely on the tones and sounds for the sake of mental travelling. This is an exquisite ambient record. It is fantastic. It is currently at the top of “The Best Ambient Music on Bandcamp: October 2020” for good reason.
You can feel the warm waves, sunshine and nature in this music, yet it also has the cold emptiness of the moon and the light and crisp textures of soft clouds and rustling autumn leaves. Atmospheric comfort like soft blankets or cozy sweaters. Think of it as the audio guide to help you explore just how vast your own inner world is.
Matthew Cardinal may already be getting well known in Canada’s indie rock music scene for slow girl walking and nêhiyawak, but his solo work sounds nothing like either of those two projects. This record is a standalone timeless gem that I’m sure I’ll revisit forever because one always needs to seek out a little inner peace, right?
- Joel Klaverkamp
Elsewhere
Green Room // Divine Bovine
2020 has been a turbulent year for musicians and fans alike. As releases and tours are inevitably delayed and most live performances prohibited indefinitely, some artists have taken the past months as somewhat of a rest period. Even so, Kamloops/Vancouver based psych pop trio Elsewhere have kept full speed ahead with the October 30th release of their debut full length, Green Room. The album is set to come out on growing independent label Divine Bovine Records, founded in 2019 by noted Kamloops musicians Emilio Pagnotta (Mother Sun, Echo Beach) and Jared Doherty (Mother Sun, At Mission Dolores).
Green Room was recorded intermittently, with the band laying down instrumental bed tracks at Kris Ruston’s Death Mountain Sound studio in Whitecroft, BC, only then to complete vocals, keys, synths and percussion at Divine Bovine Studio. Despite capturing the sounds that make up these songs in multiple locations over the course of two years, there is an undeniably natural course and cohesion to this record. The live floor recording method perfectly encapsulates the chemistry of these musicians, and you can feel it. “Kris is the nicest dude and the session was really relaxed, which allowed us to just perform the songs together naturally in his live room”, says Guitarist/Vocalist Jared Doherty on recording at Mountain Sound.
Green Room brings forth an exploration of sounds and genre bending melodies - from fuzzy, washed guitar over Doherty’s distinctly relaxed, sugary vocals on the captivating opening track “Looking For Trouble”, to funky, r&b inspired guitar and flanged out keys paired with Anthony Splane’s soulful vocals on tracks “Drift Back” and “Think Big”. It seems that Elsewhere have tapped into both their individual and collective niches as musicians, and crafted multi-atmospheric songs that leave me picturing sunny, desert-like landscapes, while simultaneously offering tracks that are reminiscent of memorable fall nights spent at my favourite local venue. The title track “Green Room” leads with an intimate, clean guitar riff and a satisfyingly quick turnaround on the last bar of the verses, before falling down the rabbit hole into a psychedelic jam that spotlights the finesse and taste of dummer Jared Wilman.
Lyrically, Green Room embodies the confusion, delight and uncertainty of navigating a young life during unsettling times. Musically, this record is brought to life by Elsewhere’s liveliness and imaginative style of songwriting. The combination of intricate, psych-pop inspired arrangements with lyrics that speak to the emotional duress of our time make Green Room the perfect album to throw on and get lost in while we settle into the new normal.
- Lauren Giorgio
