Monolith Cocktail Blog

ALBUM REVIEW
Words: Andrew C. Kidd

Western Edges ‘Prowess’

(Sound In Silence) 10 April 2019

After listening to the eight tracks of Prowess, I am left thinking about Andrew Marvell’s famous poem, ‘The Garden’; in particular, the lines:

“Meanwhile the mind, from pleasure less,

Withdraws into its happiness”

After being overcome by the ampleness of all the fruits and flowers of his metaphorical garden, Marvell eventually found solace in nature (or, rather, through the Greek derivation, meta ta physika: after the things of nature). Marvell was a Yorkshireman and so is Richard Adams, the producer of the deeply meditative Prowess.

Warm pads and a gently repetitive motif introduce You Look So Beautiful From Up Here. It is a sound akin to the opener on Bibio’s ambient masterpiece, Phantom Brickworks (Warp, 2017). The hymnal piece that follows, Suddenly: A Dream, coruscates in the brightness of its light synthwork.

Adams was supposedly inspired by the Aire Valley when writing Prowess. From its tributaries in the Becks of Skipton and Bradford and the Rivers of Worth and Calder, the veiny arm of the River Aire stretches across Yorkshire. He captures the essence of this age-old waterway in his title track, Western Edges; it is a short sketch comprised of unhurried notes that glint like asymmetric, sun-touched ripples on a calm river.

Solid Gold Soul builds upon multiple layers; the sub-bass sings and the shuffle house rhythm is measured. Airy synths float atop it all. The oscillating, singsong sub-bass, augmented by the step-like synth melody, is also worth mentioning on You’re Going To Miss My Love. The track that follows, All Downhill From Here, features heavily processed plucks and piano effects that filter outwards in an expansive blend of polyrhythm and lyrical notes.

Very Good On The Rushes features a synth-heavy dream-sequence backed by more sub-bass. Absence is quietly ambient and minimally techno. The synths on this piece play out in a refreshingly major key and melt into one another. A slightly deeper synth layer heralds a house beat as deep as England and the 4-4 driven bass guitar riff that eventually replaces it is the anchor upon which a syncopated melody can fix; perhaps this an homage to the industrial sounds that would have emanated out of Saltaire in days past. One could even seek deeper meaning from its title, Absence: the idea of being away from something.

Adams has in effect created his own internal garden in Prowess. Using source material and influences that are close to home, he has brought us, the listener, closer to domestic peace. This is a work full of soothing melodies, wistful drones and contemplative rhythms. In our world of busy abundance, we should all consider retreating into gardens like this more often.