Robin Guthrie (Cocteau Twins) took a break before he released music in 2021. And after that flurry of activity, he was busy working on the Cocteau Twins remasters. Now that those are in the world, he's back wth his first release of 2024. Atlas is an EP of delicacy and nuance, with guitar and keyboard figures here which will not only conjure up memories of the bands Robin's been in and worked with, but which will satisfy a listener's itch to hear music that borders ambient without being sterile and cold.
Among the four tunes here, there is variety. "Atlas" has an understatement to it, with what sounds like piano but could be treated guitar or synths anchoring the faintest of melodies. "Metropol" is centered around a twang-y guitar-line, and a suggestion of the infinite. This one is of a piece with some of the recent reissues from one-time 4AD label-mate Warren Defever and His Name is Alive. "Without a Word" churns gently, a listener imagining how this could have been something from the "Love's Easy Tears" era of Cocteau Twins. Finally, closer "La Perigrina" unspools at a deliberate pace, before offering a muted-though-bright melody to listeners.
Atlas by Robin Guthrie is out now. Details below.
[Photo: Jeanne Aimon]