James Blackwell’s new album, “As the River Flows,” is a synesthetic journey into the unexpected
Every so ofter an album comes along that captures my attention because of the way it breaks all of the rules of music composition. I should really put that in quotes: “the rules.”
This was the case when I first heard the new album from Australian composer, James Blackwell. The album is called “As the River Flows” and it features 10-tracks that take you on a musical journey full of unexpected twists and turns.
“Each album I release is a story set to music,” says Blackwell when talking about his process. “[As the River Flows] tells the story of someone who is meditating, reflecting on nature. Their imaginations take them to the creation of the Earth itself, forming from cosmic matter, to the creation of life, and eventually, consciousness. This journey is as much created (imagined) by the person meditating, as it was by forces greater than ourselves.“
This idea of self creation and reflection very much comes through as the album unfolds. The only track that gets close to the idea of a traditional jazz arrangement is track 3, “The Fires of Creation” — and that is only loosely structured in a traditional way. With all of the surrounding orchestration on the track, even “The Fires of Creation” is more than just a normal track.
In some ways, Blackwell’s new album asks the listener to leave the traditional world of music behind. Leave behind any rigid idea of percussion, pop music structure, or expected musical timing. Leave behind all the rules of traditional song arrangement completely. This is about losing yourself to the flow of this album’s musical river. This is about escapism.
“[As the River Flows] has a garden-path structure,” explains Blackwell. “It’s meant to reflect a mind being pulled by nothingness to thoughts, and finding satisfaction from doing so. The flow of the album (and each song) is intended to be unexpected but smooth.”
I think that this way of musical composition and free-thinking opens the album up to something else entirely. It’s more than just a soundtrack; the album feels like it is being composed live by something that is developing before your ears. Because each track doesn’t follow a predictable song structure, the effect is music that becomes seemingly alive and synesthetic rather than stayed and expected. You can imagine the album sounding a just a bit different the second, and third time around. Almost like the music only appears when there is a listener. Or perhaps if you close your eyes, it feels like your ears are watching something rather than listening to it.
If you are interested in taking a musical trip down the river, stream As the River Flows below on Spotify. Or head over to the James Blackwell Bandcamp page to buy the album.
Cover art by Miguel Ángel Oyarbide
