I cannot read music, I can play no instrument. I am no musician. When I hear something like Lights, the latest album from Good Weather For An Airstrike (Tom Honey), I find myself amazed at how something so vast and intricate can be created and composed from scratch by one man. The soundscapes sound as if they have always been there, waiting for someone to tap into them and capture their form.
For me, the album is very human one. The instrumentation serves as emotions; the tones are both mournful and somehow joyous; the build ups patient and rewarding, sometimes crescendos are promised and withheld. Faint recordings, news reports or official statements, pass by in the background and perfectly capture the constant stream of information we are now subject to, sound clips which are partially drowned out by the music and represent the human preoccupation with one’s own feelings admist the bombardment of data. This is carefully crafted and clever music.
I’m hearing Sigur Ros. I’m hearing Stars Of The Lid. I’m hearing Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. Lights can stand up there with the big boys and be the perfect score to your day.
Lights is due out on 29th October on Sound In Silence. In the meantime check the Bandcamp page and listen to the previous releases.