Soft Hills, The
Chromatisms
Chromatisms by Seattle indiegroup is a study in contrasts - of light and shadow, yin and yang, birth and death. The album combines the delicate immediacy of folk with the power and majesty of post-rock, arrangements that nod to the classic era of 60's rock while looking forward with intertwining synths where beautiful harmonies sit on top of layers of feedback, and lyrics dig deep into the unconscious, trying to make sense of the magical and the real, the place between madness and euphoria. Compositionally, the band utilizes a diverse palette of colors, blending together reverbed guitars with moog textures, fuzzy riffs with mellotrons, lyrical bass lines against thunderous drums and delicate lapsteel weaving around vocals to create lush collages of sound. The music reveals a band in transfiguration, a group moving towards darker realms of sonic and lyrical exploration.