7.75 out of 10Matt Bartram, for those of you unaware, keeps pretty busy with his dreamy Shoegaze outfit Air Formation. He also has a few side projects worth looking into, including one with Rachel Goldstar of Experimental Aircraft. With over 9 years in the business of mixing lush with fuzzy it's safe to say he knows what he's doing. When he's not incredibly busy helping others Mr. Bartram somehow finds the time to release solo albums. His first solo album, "Arundel", came out last year and was pretty close to being a perfect album. "Left To Memory" is his second album flying solo, which lucky for us means even more sweet melancholy Indie Drone-Rock/Shoegaze to wrap our headphones around.
"Left To Memory" starts out with a super fuzzy/droney sounding guitar loop (kind of reminiscent to Spacemen 3) pulsating & scratching underneath a bouncy bass line, machine-like snare drum samples, and Matt's "just woke up/hush-hush vocals". The rest of the album maintains that course, never too loud, not necessarily "upbeat" (although kind of), very lush, and definitely noisy. If you appreciate buzzing guitar sounds, faint/sustained synths, soft vocals, a few electronic drum loops, and all of the other opulent sounds that make up for a great Shoegaze/Nu-gaze/whatever-gaze album I can assure you Matt Bartram will be right up your alley.
"Left To Memory" is the sound of one man baring his soul underneath a train station. Where lush meets loud, noise becomes soothing, and sublime becomes uplifting. More than exceptional, "Left To Memory" is resplendent, imaginative, & refreshing. For fans of Air Formation, Auburn Lull, Spacemen 3, The British Expeditionary Force, Bowery Electric, July Skies, Soul Whirling Somewhere, etc. Rec-omm-ended.
Standout Tracks: All of them keep your head floating above the clouds, but if I had to be more specific: October Song, Keep Behind The Light, The Difference Day Makes, Pylon, Cycles
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