Grayson Gilmour-No Constellation
9/10

Grayson Gilmour has been likened to Sufjan Stevens, possessing a similar talent that spans many different disciplines and styles of music. No Constellation is his fifth full-length album and continues to burrow deep into the avant-garde, anti-folk, indie-pop world, expanding and building on his previous four records, Phantom Limbs, You Sleep, We Creep, Behind Locked Doors and Abstract Arrival . It’s quite obvious that Gilmour lives and breathes music, when not performing solo he’s a member of art-rock group So So Modern and when not touring he works at Wellington’s Real Groovy record store. His solo music is built from these situations, it’s his own personal output of emotions and ideas that have emerged out of his observations of everyday life. He has a rare ability to recall events with such graphic detail, picking up different instruments to compose and depict life in its original environment. He makes places and characters come to life, breaking down the facade of modern pop music and presenting a more realistic approach to song writing that completely exposes itself to the listener. When you think of Gilmour building such elaborate sounds, alone and under no immediate pressure, you can start to understand the true beauty of this record. There’s so many rich layers formed through hours of immense concentration and dedication that it truly sparkles. It has been polished to the point where every instrument has a voice and it’s the type of record that reveals something new every time you listen to it. Though there’s still elements that instantly stand out. ‘Chromosomes’ has an infectious chorus that gets repeated over and over, and ‘Our Heads Collide’ has a cold misty quality, heard in the delicate vocal harmonies and the winter-y drone of a single keyboard note. Both ‘Pearly Whites’ and ‘ All Authenticity’ have prominent drum beats while ‘Diamond Gutters, Mermaid Sewers’ presents Gilmour the balladeer, muttering a tale of two competing elements bridged by a fantastic piano composition. No Constellation is being released by the recently rescued Flying Nun label that lay deserted for years under the watch of Warner Music New Zealand. Grayson Gilmour doesn’t exactly fit the mould of the traditional ‘Flying Nun Sound’ but it would be a step backwards to continue releasing music with the same aesthetic. Gilmour is good for the label, it shows they’re forward thinking and willing to take risks and that was what the label’s reputation was built on in the first place.
Nick

Posted by Nick Fulton under Album, Reviews
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