Any project that aims to reconcile art, science and nature will be a project that attempts to capture as big a picture as possible. Rob St. John (who we recently featured as part of Bastard Mountain) is doing just that. As part of the Fixing Broken Rivers project by Thames 21, he is working in and around the East London area, recording what he finds via photographs, field recordings and written word. He recently walked the length of the River Lea in East London, taking field recordings as he went. The result was a collection of clips that capture the life along the river: people chatting, boats passing, aeroplanes flying overhead as swans land in the water. We are probably pushing our remit as a music blog in writing about this, but it makes for an oddly entrancing listen.

Add in the photographs and you begin to get a comprehensive view of the area, my foretold ‘big picture.’ The recording of everyday things, of life, come alive and conjure a newfound sense of wonder in what would normally be considered mundane. Rob St. John proves there is value in the marriage of science and art, and there is no reason why these ideas can’t be taken further. If their are any super-wealthy philanthropists out there whose fortunes are burning a hole in their pockets, might I suggest some grant-based movement that expands on this form, global projects utilising sounds and music and photgraphs, film and literature and oral history? I’m first in line.

The final result will be released sometime in 2015 as sound, photography and writing. Keep an eye on the Rob St. John Twitter page for updates.

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“I think no matter how stable I am I will always be searching, I guess that’s what this album is about. The endless searching, the fruitless waiting, the idea of a home that is inside yourself”.

She contemplates love and life and death and does so in a way that feels both fundamental in some timeless sense, and also novel and fresh and raw. It is an album with melancholy that cuts straight to the bone but it also feels oddly comforting. I found myself becoming increasingly attached to the album with repeated listens. It wasn’t so much a “grower” as a “grabber”, it reels you in and won’t let go, and if you’re anything like me then you won’t want to be let go.

You can get the album from Bathetic Records, although the initial pressing of the record has sold out. A second pressing is well underway and the label says all orders with be fulfilled as soon as possible. You can also get the album as a digital download from most of the big music sites, and can also listen to it in full via Spotify.

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For me at least, ambient music is much more enjoyable with some sort of context in which to hear it. Much like a soundtrack for a film, you find yourself imagining what Raymond went through when he was making the album and suddenly the music makes sense. For example on ‘Riverside’ the fuzzy drone that outcompetes the other sounds is almost like the buzz of silence after something violent and shocking. The period of stillness where everything seems to have a slight hum, a residual vibration after a disturbance. The event is somehow still present despite time moving on. Reading the aims of the album which Raymond outlines on his website I would say this is exactly the kind of thing he was aiming for. A superb, haunting work which deserves some thought beyond casual listening.

Night is available from Bandcamp to stream or you can download the album here.

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