reviews / 2009

WES WILLENBRING - Close, But Not Too Close

Name: WES WILLENBRING – Close, But Not Too Close
Item: Close, But Not Too Close
Rating: 6.5
Author: Raffaello Russo

2009 (Hidden Shoal)

ambient, electro-acoustic

by Raffaello Russo

6.5

Two years after his debut "Somewhere Someone Else", which revealed him as a refined post-ambient composer, Californian artist Wes Willenbring returns to record for his trusted label Hidden Shoal. He does so by offering a new, concise essay in his fluid sonic manipulations, in an album running under forty minutes yet more than enough to broaden his stylistic and compositional range.

Where the debut was built around an alternation between descriptive, stretched-out tones and guitar drones on one hand and romantic piano inserts on the other, "Close, But Not Too Close" finds Willenbring thickening his sound palette, enriching the instrumentation with, for instance, the classic fingerpicking of "The Burrow" and the organ that marks the opening "I'm Looking Forward To Your Funeral". Simple piano textures are still present, but even these, as in the emblematic "My Ghostly Fingers", come across as bare and spectral, masterfully bent to enhance the cinematic, enveloping essence of a work defined by evanescent melodies and a restless emotional texture. A solid confirmation for a talented artist; essential listening for anyone who has loved bands such as Labradford and Stars Of The Lid.

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07/11/2009

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This article is an English translation of the original Italian text by Raffaello Russo, published on OndaRock.it. It was translated with the help of artificial intelligence, under the editorial responsibility of OndaRock's editor-in-chief, Claudio Fabretti.

Read the original in Italian · About the English edition