Claire Rousay - Distance Therapy (2022)

Insightful ambient modernist claire rousay draws on experiences with remote psychotherapy for a quietly captivating and surprising 2nd session with Naarm/Melbourne’s Longform Editions

Defined by a palpable sense of detachment that alludes to the piece’s title, ‘Distance Therapy’ sees rousay embrace the longform series’ agenda with a near subliminal transition from overheard field recordings of a tennis court to an almost DJ Python-esque conclusion of downbeat dembow/hip hop drums and emotive synths. They really lull us into a sort of third place headspace in between thanks to a gossamer fine appreciation of textural-spatial nuance and lingering lacunæ that most beautifully mess with the listener’s proprioceptions.

claire is evidently a keen listener, paying attention to the most serendipitous dynamics of the world as it is, and which bleed thru most naturally in their music, where the softest keys perfuse wide open scenes as if drifting in from an open window in the imagination, harmonising with the birds and infrasonic rumbles of traffic, until the piece accretes as a piece of composed music, culminating in a genuinely shiver-worthy final passage of ambient beatdown. It’s about the journey as much as the destination, though, you’re in for a real treat here.