Illusion
Labile, 2021
8/10
Derrick Stembridge might be the most prolific musician today. In addition to Drifting In Silence and the more electronic focused Unknowndivide, he’s also making music as Long The Night, where he injects a tense component into his electronic vision.
“Divided Souls” starts the listen and makes an immediate impression with its thick haze of dark ambience that sounds like how the cover art looks, and “Untold Mind” follows with a soft droning of wordless vocals and nearly spiritual like textures.
Elsewhere, “Transparent” flows with a meditative dreaminess that’s quite cinematic in scope, while “Through Blind Eyes” rumbles with an ominous quality of shifting moods. “A Forgotten Time”, a late album standout, then swirls with complicated and memorable electronic manipulation.
“The Myth Of Now” arrives near the end and turns minimalism into a refined art with its unparalleled attention to detail, and “Illusion” exits the listen aglow in an emotive and gorgeously layered finish to a very interesting listen.
Other than light chanting, there is no singing to be found, and, quite honestly, it isn’t needed. Long The Night instead focus on field recordings and sonically engaging song craft to let the listener imagine.
Travels well with: Drifting In Silence- False Awakening; Unknown Divide- Existence