Austin-based electro-acoustic artist and songwriter Shimmer Island emphatically debuts today with his poised, articulate and predominantly envelope-pushing inaugural project, Violet Waves.
The debut release for any artist is a challenging statement of intent for their creativity, and compellingly, Shimmer Island opts to highlight the downtempo and slow-burning closing track, "Out of Reason," in lieu of the more upbeat genre-blending efforts that complete this five-track project. Accompanied by a wholly moving visual, he effortlessly blurs the lines between a contemporary music video and an art performance piece.
Opening with a bordering on transcendental cohesion of softly plucked acoustic guitars, eponymously shimmering synth textures, and chilling vocal melodies, you're slowly eased into his personally reflective and enveloping aural atmosphere. As the synth textures dissolve into the verses, his pensive vocal takes their place, swathed in such a sense of authentic vulnerability, that it truly only needs the tender guitar melodies to hold your attention firmly with both hands.
"Out of Reason" dynamically soars and dives through its differing shades, and with it, the emotional immediacy gently compounds by virtue of it's masterfully placed atmospheric textures and understated, yet steadily increasingly exasperated quality of his voice. It's definitely not a track that can be listened to passively, and with an opening salvo this strong, Shimmer Island will no doubt ensnare our minds for many years to come.
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