Louis Sterling - Adisceda (2019)

The merit of Sterling’s holistic musical background comes through in the deft synthesis of electronics and traditional instrumentation. Capacious acoustics washed with soft reverb and distant voices create the dream-like atmosphere that characterises this album.

Title track Adisceda sets the scene with rich textures and interspersed motifs of cello and choral lines. Blemishes of electric guitar and flute in The Pillars of the Serene casts the listener to hazy desert landscapes, whereas tracks such as Under the Monarch and An Ancestor’s Forgiveness show a soundworld reminiscent of artists like William Bassinski and Tim Hecker. Formative years spent in cathedrals and concert halls come shining throughout, with the natural resonance of these spaces imbued within Sterling’s internal hearing.

The album is delicate yet sophisticated, a subtle blend of new-age Ambient, granulated drone and experimental, rooted under a fluid classical framework and subtle instrumentation.