Peter Broderick: Float (Type LP/CD/digital)
From the opening strings swoon of "A Snowflake," it's immediately obvious that Peter Broderick's full-length debut for Type is going to be a gorgeous one. A Portland-based multi-instrumentalist, the majority of the pieces on Float are acoustic instrumentals based primarily around delicate piano melodies and string arrangements. In fact, the title of the opening track is indicative of the mood this music evokes, one of fragile beauty, the feeling of snow resting precariously on tree branches, undisturbed but preciously temporary. This preciousness occasionally runs the risk of feeling overly cloying or sentimental, but it's well-tempered by the inclusion of textured field recordings, minimal electronic adornments and occasional vocal contributions.
One of the most striking pieces to be heard on Float is the longest one, sitting in the center of playback. "Stopping on the Broadway Bridge" takes its time with the use of dense low-end string drones, plucked, freeform banjo and intermittent mallet sounds. When its string section swells with open chords, it lives and breathes, bristling with life in a way that is fairly unique when compared to the rest of Float. This tension and energy is a welcome focal point and offsets some of the more delicate sounds to be found before and after this track, allowing the full playback of Float to become more of a journey, moving in and out of different moods and sounds rather than idling in place.
Other highlights include the odd blippy synth that bridges tracks "Something Has Changed" and "Broken Patterns," a startling break from the organic strings and piano that dominate the rest of the album, and the pervasive gloom of "An Ending," which takes its time unfolding. I also like the curious decision to close with "A Beginning," a somewhat optimistic piece that undoes some of the severe gravity of the previous track.
This was originally released a little while ago as an extremely limited vinyl LP, but it's fortunately getting a broader CD push early next week (it's available now in digital formats from Boomkat). It's a gorgeous album that really shows Broderick's skills as an arranger, something that was suggested by the stark piano of his previous release Docile, followed through here with beautiful results.
mp3s: Floating/Sinking | An Ending
more information: Type Records
buy it: Bent Crayon | Boomkat | Forced Exposure | Amazon