Is it ever possible for ambient music – which is by nature sedate – to make a big splash? If so, one might consider the impact of Willamette‘s debut Echo Park, which landed at #3 on Fluid Radio’s chart last year. Fans didn’t have to wait too long for a follow-up, as Always in Postscript, the soundtrack to the film All the Lines Flow Out, was already in the bag, but don’t expect a rush of productivity from the duo; this 10″ will be their last release for a while. Its influence, however, may be felt all year.
The cutting edge of ambient music – again, a questionable phrase, but “butter knife” seems too dull – is the swirled area between ambience and modern composition. This is the area in which Davin Chong and Joseph Edward excel. Credit their different backgrounds, as well as their stated goal of making “ambiguous” music. It’s not too difficult to make decent ambient tracks, but to make tracks that stand out, something extra is required – in this case, classical-tinged piano and cello. Whenever these passages arise, as they do midway through “Portrait of a Sleeping Girl With Radio” and toward the end of “A Year of Failure, A Year of Fortune”, the songs are elevated past the point of sweeping elegance. They make an impression, in the same way that A Winged Victory for the Sullen‘s tracks make an impression: by calling attention to composition as well as to tone. And because these passages are so effective, the listener pays closer attention to the others as well. The dining room on the cover may be the perfect place to play such music, which balances delicately between performance and background: not immediate enough to draw a diner’s complete attention, but not restrained enough to resist notice. On Side B, both influences are present throughout; without contrast, the sense of surprise is dimmed, but the overall effect is heightened. As the closing notes of the title track fade, listeners may have already begun to forget the five-note piano motif, while committing the duo’s name to memory. (Richard Allen)
a closer listen 