The Trouble With Wilderness
Self-Released, 2021
8/10
Listen to The Trouble With Wilderness
A multi-instrumentalist and composer, Ben Cosgrove brings a wealth of talent to these 12 tracks that thematically surround the role of nature and wildness in the built environment.
“The Machine In The Garden” starts the album with plenty of attention to mood as piano and upright pass interact with much grace and playfulness, and “Anorak” follows with hypnotic keys that flow with absorbing melody as a firmness embraces much emotion.
Landing near the middle, “This Rush Of Beauty And This Sense Of Order” displays sublime and complicated piano prowess that mesmerizes in its unparalleled delivery, while “Oklahoma Wind Speed Measurement Club” calms things down to a bare, expressive cinematic quality. “Wilder”, one of the album’s best, the spends 2 minutes enthralling us with its mysterious atmosphere and shimmering beauty.
Close to the end, “Meltwater” builds into a dizzying display of fascinating, lush and animated song craft, and “Templates For Limitless Fields Of Grass” exits the listen with stunning finger acrobatics as Cosgrove’s inimitable vision contains so much meticulousness that it never out welcomes its 10 minute finish.
Cosgrove occupies a unique spot with his art, as he’s a singer-songwriter who doesn’t sing, and a composer who acts as a singer-songwriter. and here, though he focuses on piano, he also handles accordion, banjo and many other instruments on a truly unique and balanced adventure.
Travels well with: Ryanhood- Under The Leaves; Zixiang Wang- First Piano Sonatas