Kyle Bobby Dunn ~ Bring Me the Head of Kyle Bobby Dunn

A sweet paradise awaits all who dive into Kyle Bobby Dunn‘s music. Bring Me The Head of… is like a hazy, gorgeous dream, drifting along the delta waves of the subconscious. Truly sublime music may allure us utterly with her presence, yet this stunning moment of complete bliss seems to happen all too infrequently. As much as we would like the perfect musical moment to wait around awhile longer, the bittersweet seconds are never a disappointment when they arrive. It is the special moment of a first listen (or a first love) which long remains perfectly in tune for years to come. Like falling in love, the moment is made all the more sweeter for its shy reluctance to make a pronounced entrance. Surrounding us completely, an incredible beauty and excitement blooms, and one which is very much cherished and kept close to the heart. In the eyes of this writer, this is a special moment, and it is one which I recently experienced whilst listening to Kyle Bobby Dunn’s latest opus. Bring Me The Head of… is a transcendental flight in the slowest of motion, and a revelation in heavenly ambient drone.

Bring Me The Head of… sighs with a feathery intensity due to Dunn’s use of deeply processed guitar and strings, creating the most beautiful, deeply tonal atmospheres. Far-reaching, the drones point closer with every passing second toward unreachable celestial spheres, forever glowing a gentle touch of warmest love. Affection for both the music and the art breathes throughout the fifteen pieces. It is quite an achievement in more ways than one; in both size and vision, the slowest, deepest breaths of drone rise up and retreat. A Young Person’s Guide To Kyle Bobby Dunn was another album that was immense in size and ambience, which is even more impressive considering Dunn’s age. At twenty four, he continues to show a remarkable maturity and experience, and this bold approach continues with Bring Me The Head of... The Canadian offers an exercise in ethereality, which, as the record progresses and the drones sink ever deeper, glides towards spirituality. Many of the pieces trail off over the horizons at ten to fifteen minute intervals, allowing for a full-bloom and gifting the listener a deeply rewarding, sedate crossing.

Arriving at nearly two hours in duration (which is an enjoyable gift instead of deterring the listener), and recorded over a number of years, Bring Me The Head of… is lovingly conceived, stately in nature and impressively cinematic in sound. Never crying for attention, the drones are content to drift along in a quiet contentment, enveloped in understated and honest layers. Everything which is laid down has an active purpose, circulating throughout the record like veins carrying life, and there is always a sense of progression. The vast, warmly lit panoramas are revealed with subtlety as the drones radiate different hues, rising and subsiding over monolithic layers like clouds playing with fine shades of sunlight. At the same time, the suites are somewhat confined in their minimalistic approach. Each piece shines a distinct light, which is admirable, as it is quite a feat to constantly keep the listener subdued and enthralled over such a length.

Partly recorded in remote areas of Canada, the music contains traces of brilliantly vivid colours, romantic reds of sentimentality that warmly envelop with an ease and then let go with a gentle abandon. A hint of loneliness or longing reflects the remote areas of seclusion as the drones focus in and out in hypnotic waves; of serene ambient blurs and a kind tonal refinement. Cries occasionally emanate outwards, but the music is never overtly reminiscent. There comes a point where the listener must dive in and immerse themselves with no hand to hold. Dunn’s atmospheres shine with a deep humility; they radiate a beautiful modesty and carry a tender innocence in their being; existing for the sake of existing.

Awash in gorgeous, light textures, the resonant drones are well rounded and fleshed out to beautiful degrees. Due to its length, it is difficult to highlight certain pieces, yet in this writer’s eyes, “An Evening With Dusty” perhaps reflects this stunning beauty to greatest effect, as shifting drones arrive on the wind and disperse repeatedly in a circle of kindness. This repetition is not immediately evident, calling for the listener to give it a deep attention, and ultimately, this is where the reward is found. Of course, it is easy to see that Kyle Bobby Dunn’s music exists in the same galaxy as the majestic Stars of The Lid, in both instrumentation and in style; of a slow moving grandeur that surrounds the listener with both an immensity of space, and an intimacy of the soul. And whilst Stars of The Lid have perfected their refinement, so too is Dunn’s music highly refined. Dunn is very much his own man, and has crafted a special work which is capable of quietly taking the breath away without the need for comparisons.

Its magnificence convinces me that it is one of the best ambient drone records of recent times. It perfectly reflects the dream state; of deep sleep and kind dreams, the brilliance of a beaming light glowing onto us and caressing us out of sleep and into an awakening. Kyle Bobby Dunn encourages us to remain forever dreaming. Bon Voyage. (James Catchpole)

Available here