Loz Goddard - Balloon Tree Road (2022)

Manchester native Loz Goddard has been crafting high-quality releases since 2015, garnering early support from the likes of Mr. Scruff, Mike Huckaby, Move D, and Session Victim. The ever-eclectic producer has since partnered up with esteemed labels such as Seb Wildblood's Church imprint and deep-house institution - Quintessentially, Loz has since reinvented his sound with an experimental edge and a penchant for live instrumentation. It's Goddard's ability to explore a wide range of genres and tempos whilst maintaining an authentically personal sound that is particularly special. Whether it's the slow ambient motions inspired by the likes of Boards of Canada or the rattling breakbeat workouts imbued with the spirit of the nineties the U.K underground, this northern powerhouse delivers a deeply immersive sound design to be utilized in the club and for home listening. His latest work has been manifested in the form of the 'Balloon Tree Road', an LP set for release on Oath - purveyors of visionary electronic decadence, heavily conceptual and forward-facing in their creative output.

The long-play record opens idyllically with the soothing tones of 'Before Times', the track that would ultimately convince Loz to pursue an extended project as opposed to the shorter bounds of an EP. Airy tones and melodic plucks drift like a careless breeze through this introductory segment, gently lowering listeners into the rich narrative of 'Balloon Tree Road'. The subsequent composition - 'Bye For Now' layers percussive elements atop slowly soaring pads and warbling keys, creating an organic atmosphere filled with wispy textures and live-sounding rhythmic production. The first single to be unveiled this November will be 'When Time Slows It Feels Weird' which sees Loz return to the floor-focused delights of breakbeat sampling. The kaleidoscopic style in which this established producer operates his Reform Radio show can be best heard in tracks such as this. Goddard meanders smoothly through downtempo chordal structures and jazz-like melodic improvisations to create an intersecting masterpiece with astounding presence both in headphones and through the weighty structure of a towering sound system. The tumbling breakbeat contrasts tastefully against the space-age timbre of the project, encouraging listeners to sway carelessly with the sound of broken-up kick and snare combinations.

'Sun27' sees our Manchester-based producer make full use of his TR-8 drum machine, delivering sharp electro decadence across harmonic arpeggiator patterns that extend dreamily through the arrangement. The rising tension through the first of the track is released like a barrage with the introduction of renegade breakbeats and a bouncy FM bassline.

'Orange Blue Green' will be the second single to be revealed from the LP at the start of next year. Sculpted from a field recording sent to Goddard by his significant other during a walk underneath a canal bridge in heavy rain. The natural reverb of the recording fills the track with spacious presence and lifelike motion. The scattering
sound of water droplets provides the backdrop for a celestial arpeggio ensemble that feels endlessly hypnotic. Loz's ability to manipulate such ethereal soundscapes is understandable - he cites Aphex Twin and Squarepusher as significant influential figures.

'With You' glides elegantly through four-to-the-floor lofi house rhythms, expanding freely into calming strings and synth layering that feels akin to the bloom of delicate flowers. The warm embrace of Goddard's chord progressions matches perfectly with harmonic vocal chops and reverberated drum claps. The LP draws to a close with 'Train To Somewhere', also the last single to be released from the album. It's a warm, slow-burning infusion of rising chordal elements and
elation-inducing strings. A perfectly somber end to an enigmatic and glowing record filled with live-instrumentation and melancholic synth programming, this track was created in Goddard's formative years with the intention to be used in a long-form release setting. The conclusive moments of this record are nothing short of immaculate, gloriously combining the ambient presence of the previous tracks, with prominent
four-to-the-floor kick and seraphim pads. Loz Goddard is welcoming the new year with a colorful and optimistic record filled with earthy tones, setting the scenes for much-needed musical regrowth in the early stages of 2022.