Connecticut's Color Plus is a name that's been on the radar for a while, but his newest Cerulean Dream LP is worth quite a few blips. It could be the soundtrack to a blissful cosmic beat lounge, but he's offered up this stellar taster for free on his Bandcamp. The least you can do is give it a listen and be grabbed by the smooth instrumentals. Try not to drift away.
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"Ashore" is a quintessentially beautiful second track opener with guitar strums gliding over stabs of wistful vocals. Tracks like this bring to mind an array of subtle influences; this release is like a three-way lovechild between Clams Casino, Washed Out and Morri$ that someone else raised and weened off of screw tapes. Namedrops and Navi drops (how can you not love these?) aside, that's not to say he doesn't have his own sound. This release as a whole and tracks like "Only.you" are proof aplenty otherwise.
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Overall, Cerulean Dream is a venture in relaxation, so don't expect many bangers per se from the bass tag. There's no shortage of bass however, and the more upbeat bits like "Escape Rope" certainly definitely for banging. "Clock Town" revisits the core sound of the release with ethereal echoes and simple yet poignant percussion. Despite all the chilled vibes, Color Plus is not afraid to heat it up a little. This is witnessed again on "Manatee:in:Motion", an excellent footwork-tempo shuffler on par with contemporaries like Machinedrum.
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As far as other choice tunes go, do not neglect "My Three Suns". If you're feeling this, make sure to check his Soundcloud and Fuzz on his Bandcamp for even more free goodness. Grab a download link in the description (here for the lazy), or throw him a dollar if you are feeling generous. Audio therapy this high quality is worth at least that, right?
