Album Review: Slowly Falling (Extended Mix) by Jeff Pearce

Review by Candice Michelle

A top artist in the ambient/space music genre, Indiana based musician Jeff Pearce is best known for his pioneering and influential style of ambient guitar music that he’s been recording since the early 1990s. Released as an extended version of the nearly 17 ½ long piece “Slowly Falling” from his 4-track album In Winter released in 2021, Slowly Falling (Extended Mix) is a long-form album comprised of the hour-long title piece. Composed entirely on electric guitar, Jeff employs his signature digital processing, delay effects and layering techniques to create ethereally shimmering and multi-faceted textures.

Drawing creative inspiration from the natural environment, changing seasons, astronomical and meteorological phenomena, Jeff’s music is observational in character, yet also exudes a deeply emotive and personal quality that’s seemingly wrapped in an inexpressible mystique that is once again exemplified on this majestic composition of space-ambient perfection.

Transpiring as one continuous sound passage that paints wintry images of a cold, northern terrain, “Slowly Falling” feels evocative of being cozily nestled inside an aurora glass cabin, while its translucent shapes and intangible shadows of softy-swirling sonic encompassment are sure to have the listener ‘slowly falling’ into a deep dream sequence!  

~Candice Michelle for Journeyscapes 

For more information please visit the artist's website. Slowly Falling (Extended Mix) is also available at Bandcamp and more!

Album Review: Debris of Nostalgia by Acheloo

Acheloo is the recording alias of Italian ambient composer and guitarist Carlo Luzi, whose music I initially discovered in early 2018 with his 2017 album Ethereal. Titled Debris of Nostalgia, Acheloo’s latest full-length release is comprised of nine hauntingly beautiful soundscapes filled with mystery and melancholy. Written, produced, mixed and mastered by Luzi, who also designed the album’s cover artwork, Debris of Nostalgia features luminously drifting electric guitar figures and sparsely shimmering piano notes, which are carried along throughout by expanding clouds of quasi-cinematic permeance.

The profoundly affecting compositions are quietly understated yet emotionally intense, a characteristic that is perhaps best exemplified on “Distant Sign”, which perfectly captures how a piece of music can be so subtly simple yet magnificently moving. Softly rolling in and out like an ocean tide, the main repeating chord figure of this unforgettably gorgeous passage conveys a poignant comfort and mysterious longing that washes over the senses, as shadowy tonal atmospheres materialize like rising mists from the sea.

The album’s use of the word “nostalgia” effectively conjures both a relative personal past and ancient mythical past, as such is the case with the mesmerizing farewell, “Underworld”, which exceptionally embodies this quality. Evocative of entering a gateway to another realm, metallically shimmering guitar notes peer through towering icy blasts, which can be likened to sailing on a cold sea through a mountainous strait, as we are briefly met by a hauntingly disembodied echo that beckons from the amorphous ambient fog.

Easily a top contender for the year's finest ambient recording, Debris of Nostalgia immediately captivated my ears upon first listen and has only increasingly enamored me over the past few months. A crowning achievement for Acheloo, the minimalistic elegance and aching sense of yearning the compositions convey puts me in a similar headspace as Harold Budd’s outstanding classic The White Arcades – a compliment of the highest order! ~Candice Michelle 

Available at Amazon and Bandcamp. For more information please visit the artist's website.

Album Review: RUNE by David Helpling

I recall first hearing the music of San Diego based guitarist and ambient composer David Helpling upon discovering his second album, Sleeping On the Edge of the World, which was released on the prestigious Spotted Peccary Music label in 1999. Since then, he’s recorded three collaborative landmark albums with fellow ambient musician and label-mate Jon Jenkins, followed by a solo space-ambient album in 2017 titled A Sea Without Memory.

Having grown up near the Pacific Ocean, its waters were always a source of healing, serenity and wonder for Helpling, hence it’s not surprising that he’s looked to the sea again for the theme of his new album RUNE. Drawing upon Viking mythology, his latest creation is inspired by the Norse rune “laguz”, which translates to “water”. Likewise, the rune's symbol adorns the album’s tantalizing cover image, which Helpling conceptualized with the help of photographer Joseph Abreu and artwork designer Daniel Pipitone.

Spanning almost seventy minutes in length, RUNE features eight compositions that were masterfully sculpted with electric guitars and a custom rig. This impressive feat may come as a surprise to listeners who might otherwise mistake many of these sounds for synthesizers. Comprised of lushly layered guitar melodies and stringed rhythmic patterns, Helpling spins scintillating aural threads into fluidly spiraling arrangements that reverberate all throughout the listening space. Echoingly iridescent tones in the higher range seemingly mimic siren calls amid sustained undercurrents of mellifluous sound textures.



Perhaps a way to illustrate this listening experience is by imagining oneself suspended in water, only every inch of liquid occupying the enveloping environment is comprised of these otherworldly sonic vibrations. Conjuring a sense of both the natural and the mythical – dolphins swimming alongside mermaids, lost underwater kingdoms entwined among the colorful growth of coral reefs – these enchantingly beautiful transmissions seemingly open a pelagic portal and unveil an ancient hidden paradise.

While the technical process of recording, editing and mastering any composition entails logical thought process, the creation of music such as this inherently strikes me as one that more involves ‘channeling’ than it does ‘thinking’. I can only imagine the mental space Helpling entered while composing this breathtaking album.

One of the most sublimely euphoric moments is a piece called “Be”. Majestically unfolding into back-spiraling patterns of shimmering tonal harmonies, it perfectly conveys the song title's notion of freedom and openness. And although the music throughout is nothing short of blissful, there’s a certain sense of melancholy that underlies its sunlight scattered surface, perhaps resulting from the artist tapping into the empathic nature of the water element. 



I recall Helpling citing the band U2 as one of his musical inspirations, and although he creates music of quite a different nature, that influence is certainly detectable at times. Additionally, while there are definite signature style differences between them, fans of both Erik Wøllo’s and Jeff Pearce’s pioneering ambient guitar works might concur that RUNE musically occupies a certain realm between the two.

Watching David Helpling’s musical evolution through the years has been fascinating, and this album is nothing short of another masterpiece among his magnificent body of work. Already one of the year’s top releases, listeners will want to unlock this musical treasure trove and discover the oceanic secrets of the RUNE! ~Candice Michelle

Available at Amazon, Bandcamp, Spotted Peccary and other music retail & streaming platforms. 

You can also check out our insightful interview with David Helpling conducted in late 2018 here. 

Artist Spotlight: An Interview with Jeff Pearce

(Above photo by Jeff Towne)

We’re delighted to present a very special interview with Jeff Pearce. He’s an Indiana based musician who composes beautifully ethereal ambient guitar music, and is one of the pioneers of the ambient guitar style. Jeff has released a gorgeous new album called SKIES AND STARS just in time for some cooler weather here in the northern hemisphere. We’ll be speaking with Jeff about the inspiration behind his new album, as well as look back on his career which spans two-and-a-half decades. So please join us for an insightful conversation as we stargaze with guitars!



Jeff Pearce's music is available at Amazon, Bandcamp and other music retailers.

Artist Spotlight: An Interview with David Helpling

We’re honored to present an audio interview with ambient/electronic music composer and guitarist David Helpling. Based in San Diego, California, David has released a handful of widely-acclaimed solo and collaborative albums over the years on the Spotted Peccary label, as well as produced works for other recording artists. Some of the highlights in this segment include discussion about David’s recent work with ELEON, who just released his debut album Dreams Beyond Terra on Heart Dance Records. We'll also talk about David’s most recent solo album A Sea Without Memory, as well as his work with fellow Spotted Peccary label mates Jon Jenkins, Sverre Knut Johansen and more! Additionally, we’ll hear a piece by ELEON that David co-produced and performed on, as well as two additional pieces throughout the conversation.

Album Review: Earthlight by Jon Richards

Earthlight is the sixth album from musician and composer Jon Richards. Comprised of eight compositions spanning just over an hour, the album showcases a beautiful array of electric guitar melodies and textures, perfectly interwoven among encompassing synthesizers, electronic rhythms and ethereal voices throughout.

The title track, “Earthlight”, opens like an approaching dawn, introduced by warm, enveloping synthesizers and gentle guitar plucks. Encroaching drums soon give way to a steady electronic rhythm, as the piece takes on a more cinematic quality full of keyboard layers and soaring electric guitar that collectively impart a feeling of flight. “Falling Star” continues in this mode while introducing cello, as exotic female vocals lend a touch of world to the piece. The leisurely-paced “Daybreak” is one of my favorite compositions, which showcases a gorgeous electric guitar motif along with cello and airy bells. “Satellites” takes things up a notch with more dynamic electronic elements, as the familiar female voice injects a worldlier feel into its spacey arrangement. “Afterglow” is especially dreamlike, in which choral voices and ethereal guitar soar among echoing drums. The aptly-named “Solar Winds” opens with the sound of cosmic winds that eventually morph into a melodic and mesmerizing chill-style arrangement. “Eternity” is initially led by the sound of Dakuk, a gorgeous instrument from Armenia that I’ve long been particularly fond of. Clocking in at nine-and-a-half minutes, it’s the lengthiest track on the album, in which all of the familiar elements mark their presence throughout. “Majestic” signals the end of our stratospheric sojourn, concluding with a mystical female voice that seems to represent Gaia herself transmitting a secret message into the ethers.

Infused with a global spirit and cosmic sensibility, Earthlight seems to behold our earth in all of its glory. I was often reminded of Mike Oldfield’s longtime seminal work, The Songs of Distant Earth, especially with regard to the album’s overall concept, as well as the electric guitar as its lead instrument. Magnificent and moving from beginning to end, Earthlight is easily Jon Richards’ best album to date, as well as one of the most beautifully inspiring recordings I’ve had the pleasure of listening to all year! ~Candice Michelle

Available at Amazon and other music retail platforms.