The music of Carmen Villain is likely going to get pegged as ambient or trance or something. The reality is that the tunes are instrumental and full of the elements of multiple genres all at once. The musician's newest album, Both Lines Will Be Blue, out on Friday via Smalltown Supersound, is lush and starkly beautifuL in turns.
Opener "Observable Future" rides in on a flute-figure like something faintly tropical, while the even better "Are You For Real" mixes natural sound (running water), with percussive elements that suggest something being barely held in check. Elsewhere, "Type" offers up a barely perceptible hint of dub, while "Sometimes I Love You Forever" mixes textures like those of a Jon Hassell or Holger Czukay record in the service of a subtle hook that carries a listener into the mists. There's something very tropical about lots of Both Lines Will Be Blue, which only seems surprising since Carmen Villain is based in Oslo. That so much of this works so easily is testament to the deft touch here, with Carmen rarely overdoing even the most basic of elements. Really, this might seem simple on first listen, but there are many pieces mingling here, with the recipe for this music a nearly-mystical one.
Both Lines Will Be Blue is out on Friday via Smalltown Supersound.
More details on Carmen Villain via her official Facebook page.
[Photo: Signe Luksengard]