BLURRING INTO MOTION

Classically-influenced instrumental acoustic folk music in the same vein as NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA, Charlie is quite the multi-instrumentalist!

1. "Dance of Time" (5:03) nice, gentle multi-thread weave of guitars, tuned percussion, flutes, and strings. (8.67/10)

2. "The Stars Turn" (3:59) same as the previous song: a gentle weave of the exact same instrument palette. A little more Steve REICHian/NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA construction here. (8.67/10)

3. "Falling Into Blue" (2:36) fast-picked acoustic guitars behind Marjana Semkina singing in her lower registers. Winds, xylophone, and Marjana's background vocals join in the chorus. Strings and tuned percussion remain for the second verse. Again, this could be a quaint little NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA song. (4.25/5)

4. "Abyss of Memory" (3:05) multiple acoustic guitars with piano and vibraphone weave this one at another moderately slow pace. The melody line repeats over and over while myriad other instruments join in and create other layers and harmony threads. Interesting. (8.75/10)

5. "The Dark Within" (4:37) guitar and strings open this one like a WILLIAM ACKERMAN tune. At 0:50 piano and woodwinds join in and it gets beautiful. At 1:30 double bass and percussion and vibes are added. It actually doesn't feel as dark as it feels full of 'disappointment' though it does get a little discordant toward the end. (9/10)

6. "Blurring Into Motion" (3:29) fast-picked acoustic guitars, piano, and soon, flute, start this weave. Strings join in at the end of the first minute (including bass). (8.5/10)

7. "From Pure Air" (4:05) harp and classical guitar open this one. A very gentle, soothing, calming song. (8.75/10)

8. "A Severed Circle" (4:35) another beautiful multi-instrumental weave that once again reminds me of the NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA though also some of Jesy Chiang's CICADA compositions as well. Very nice. A top three song. (9/10)

9. "The False Mirror" (3:28) More of the same; beautiful but basically background music. (8.67/10)

10. "Flicker Out of Being" (4:27) a pleasant song in which Marjana Semkina's beautiful, ethereal voice blends in as if it were another string or wind instrument. A top three song for me. (9.25/10)

11. "Between Two Worlds" (4:48) flute and chor anglais over guitars, vibraphone and piano in another fast shifting NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA-like song. Very nicely constructed tapestry. (8.75/10)

12. "Voice of Space" (6:35) slow and brooding piano, acoustic guitar, harp and vibes with secondary instruments providing chord accents every sixth whole note. Reminds me of many Pat Metheny song openings. Flute and winds take over lead melody over the top while celeste does another line in the middle. Strings eventually join in, thickening the weave. Another top three for me. (9.25/10)

Total time: 50:47

While the music here is beautiful--often calming or even soothing--and the compositions quite intricate and harmonically sophisticate, there is too much a "sameness" of the music and too often a lack of fully engaging melodies.

B+/4.5 stars; wonderful contribution of neo-chamber jazzy folk music of the mostly-acoustic kind; an excellent addition to any prog lover's