Matthew Cooper, aka Eluvium, has created a blend of ambient shoe gaze drone flirting with piano pop sentiments in his latest release Similes. The incorporation of brevity into his compositions makes the album both expansive and digestible all at once. From minimalist techno drone to looped, sampled laptop layering; Eluvium creates an interesting background blend for his rich piano and vocals.
“The Motion Makes Me Last” starts off with a digitally delayed and repeated drone that bleeds into Cooper’s voice, a previously uncharted area for Eluvium – and a feat, as Cooper’s vocals go exactly where he intends. “Nightmare 5” is lush and carefully woven, with the audible attention oscillating from passionate piano riffs back to great walls of gorgeous ambient drone. And the power of the piano writing takes the forefront on “Making Up Minds.”
Although clocking in at a minimal length unusual for most ambient enthusiasts, the album feels rewardingly deep. With Similes, Eluvium’s subtle craft unfolds slowly, reading like a weathered hardcover classic. As the album comes to a close with “Cease to Know,” electronic wisps carry the listener out, a perfect complement to nighttime drivers lost in both the luminescent blur of a city’s lights and the catalog of their own scattered history.
More info about Similes can be found via Temporary Residence
by: Bene Garcia
