Mike Williams
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A Brilliant Second Album
Those who liked The Gathering Mist’s previous release ‘Rhythmic Epiphany’ are in for a treat with ‘Reservoir’. The sound is more varied, more complex, and, for those who love a good beat, more…well, rhythmic! The sound can either carry you with it, moving through a world of emotions and influences as you relax in its presence, or, for a purist, you can listen intently, recognising the myriad instrumentation, layers of arrangement, and musical signatures that punctuate the experience.
The album starts with Caliginous – a word meaning dark and misty – a suitable start considering the name of the band. But the music is anything but dark, with a fierce percussive pace underlying a more laid-back rhythm. Immersion brings steel drums to complement the other percussion and you are at once transported to sunny climes and the chilled feeling of summer. January, as its name suggests, is darker, with a pulsating guitar, first softly and then with determined insistence, adding spirit and bite to the music and challenging your ears to take notice.
Oasis is different again and introduces the softness of a piano, which, on top of the percussion and other sounds, is hypnotising, drawing you in to its world of possibility; just like an oasis should. Batido de Naranja brings woodwind to the mix, an exotic, haunting sound. The following tracks are are softer, more introspective with Ceramics introducing the enchanting sound of singing bowls. The Gathering Mist might not have a vocalist but, here, they don’t need one. Suspension and Quiescence returns the beautiful piano to the blend and Underlying gives us a crash of cymbals to start. Distance is a haunting, unsettling track that hints of loss, before The Surrounding Leaves revives us with more electric guitar. Duality gives us a pause before Prism leads us to a rousing finale.
What the Gathering Mist has given us with this album is a musical treat. It is a smorgasbord of sounds, rhythms, and moods to accompany us through the day and be our solace through the night. It is complex, yet approachable, rhythmic yet relaxing, but, above all, it is just terribly good.
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