Sounds like…

Oceanic acoustic guitar cycles.

The review

The beauty of the acoustic guitar is that you can lay so much expression into it as an instrument. The Phonometrician takes the acoustic guitar on a clean and watery journey, pairing it with ocean sounds to create a summer EP designed to relax you. It sounds like a breath of fresh air.

Across the five tracks, The Phonometrician uses picked chords with the tiniest mini riffs inserted inside them. It’s as if the chords themselves have a lilt to them, The melodies slowly evolve but in subtle ways. This isn’t ambient but it shares that slow twist of time feeling ambient music often covets. Behind each of the acoustic guitar layers sit a warm glowing drone. On ‘Somos Ser’ it’s the distant crashing of ocean waves. For ‘Campos de Trigo’ it’s a vocal drone like a choral arrangement. ‘Lo que Fue’ and ‘B’ have an in-room recorded reverb style to them so the guitar resonance becomes its own drone. This gentle extra production keeps the music still summery but adds audio depth, quietness and stillness to them. Only the closing track ‘B’ has some bombastic guitar playing as its finale – everything else is like a morning beach walk.

Understated and beautiful, I really liked how the label Lost Tribe Sounds described it. They say their music is for fall and winter climates but after 18 months of being indoors, they wanted to experience something a little more uplifting. Whilst The Phonometrician isn’t exactly bouncing off the walls, its simple charm reminds me of small Japanese seaside villages. It is a great moment for pause.

Recommended track: Somos Ser

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