“We are both the shadows and the light, silhouetted in each other’s sight; curtains on the windows of our eyes, candles in the mirrors of our minds … burning in cold flame, embers soon dimming…”
The “Lucent” digital EP is comprised of three songs from Quicksilver Night’s forthcoming album Tales of a Life Beyond Me: “Precipice”, “Lucent”, and “Again the Cusp.” Each of these songs explores themes related to the choices that we make in the face of our apparent freewill and the aftermath of those choices. The lyrics are intended to be relevant to the basic human condition and generally reflect a philosophy that transcends issues of personal faith; these are the questions that drive us all.
1) “Precipice” sets the angelic voice of Meagan Smith in three-part self-canon against the insistently driving pulse of straightforward rock as she stands on the edge of a metaphorical cliff and contemplates whether or not to jump. “Precipice” also showcases the powerful voice of Tony Alany at the choruses and an acrobatic guitar solo from Scotland’s Al "Lavaman" Murdoch.
2) “Lucent” balances powerful Celtic-tinged vocals and heady progressive rock rhythms in a kinetic sonic sculpture, restless but indomitable. “Our yesterdays - distant faint glow - illuminate each tomorrow…”
3) “Again the Cusp” begins with the haunting sound of a plaintive piano, eerily gentle in a desolate wind. The song slowly grows in intensity toward denouement in which - in resonant coda to “Precipice”- Meagan sings “My will sustains; I steel my resolve. Who still remains? You failed to evolve … but I’ve gone beyond this.”
A native of Newport News, Virginia, Meagan Smith is a student at Old Dominion University where she currently majors in History and minors in Asian Studies. A gifted soprano with an exceptionally clear timbre, Meagan intends to audition for the Virginia Opera sometime in the near future.
Music and Lyrics by Warren Russell (ASCAP)
Additional concert percussion on “Lucent” and “Again the Cusp” by Brian Archer
Everything else not otherwise annotated, real or virtual, by Warren Russell
Engineered by Brian Archer at Brown Dog Studios, Springfield, VA
Additional Engineering by Justin Sunday at Quicksilver Night Productions
Produced by Brian Archer, Warren Russell, & Justin Sunday
©2012 Quicksilver Night Productions
“Leap of Faith” original artwork ©2009 by Randall Lee at Twofrom8 Design, stock by Markus Ranum
(Two other songs are currently available from Quicksilver Night’s Tales of a Life Beyond Me; the amazing guitar-driven instrumentals “Navigation (featuring Lavaman)” and “Segerns Vingar (featuring Mathias Holm)” are available at digital retailers everywhere.
If listening to them as a whole then the sonic quest that is “Navigation” should ideally follow “Lucent” and the triumphant “Segerns Vingar” should follow “Again the Cusp”. – wcr)
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