Take Me There – Chronic Lullabies
Ambience to rock is like rock to jazz; both are an incredibly distinct category that cannot be compared to its roots. Whereas rock creates its own atmosphere, ambience captures it. With a certain vision in mind, this can be utilised to great effect. Chronic Lullabies is an ambient project directed to condense the lengths of living with chronic pain, and to quite an admirable extent.
One of the album’s most commendable feature is its ability to seamless blend post-rock, ambience and lo-fi in the same vein as Tarentel’s Ephemera. With a more distinct focus on acoustic ambience, the album nicely balances its standard synths with a human presence. The opener, The People I Stay For, is equally comforting and cryptic; everything that follows is hauntingly morose. An Ode to Physical Pain is perhaps the standout of the album, with a lovely Grouper-esque atmosphere and virtuous guitar. Unfortunately, the second half of the album is disappointing. Aside from the well-articulated closer, tracks such as My Body Betrayed Me and If I feel Something… rely far too much on electronica and ambient conventions. Moreover, the song Some Things Last A Lifetime adds very little to the overall experience.
Chronic Lullabies is an incredibly thoughtful and well-expressed piece of work, painted with the most conventional colours there are. Beyond the personal background story, there’s very little to differentiate Take Me There’s style with the thousands of other ambient producers envisioning their works, yet its composure and direction make it impossible to dislike. The album artwork is perfectly encapsulating of the album’s contents; it’s an experience worth having.
Above Average
Listen to it here:
Take Me There – Chronic Lullabies
