Saltland is the name of the new project of cellist Rebecca Foon, former member of Thee Silver Mount Zion and Set Fire To The Flames and founding member of chamber group Esmerine.
The debut album, I Thought It Was Us But It Was All Of Us, is a melting pot of genres, with elements of chamber music, shoegaze, ambient and drone all mixed together with dreamy vocals to form something difficult to categorize but mightily effective. The result is an album of experimental songs that explores aspects of different types of music without ever feeling inaccessable or difficult to listen to.
The record is one of many layers and the context in which you listen to it produces very different experiences. As background music to an evening it is a pleasing listen that is easy on the ear, never getting too harsh and jarring you out of whatever else you may be doing. As the soundtrack to a train journey it brings to mind the slow machinations of the city or countryside, with tracks slowly unfolding with a natural ease. Best of all, and where I Thought It Was Us But It Was All Of Us comes into its own, is a fully involved listen, maybe lying in bed, surrounded by darkness. The layers becomes more pronounced, each strand separates and becomes an important piece of a complex arrangement. It’s the perfect night time headphone adventure in which to lose yourself.
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The album is out now on Constellation Records.