
Then, this morning, I decided to wake from my reviewing-hibernation and simply go with the flow. On my desk was this album by Yellow6, the project by Jon Attwood. The title 'Silent Streets and Empty Skies' immediately grabbed my attention. It first perfectly with the current zeitgeist, so to speak.
'Silent Streets and Empty Skies', released by Sound In Silence, is a gentle yet brooding statement about these troubled times. All tracks were recorded between April and June 2020 during the first period of lockdowns and quarantines. Attwood took the time to become inspired by the desolation he witnessed around him. Empty parks, lack of planes in the sky, people avoiding the streets. It's an odd visual experience but one which Attwood has beautifully translated into a soothing ambient album.
On this album you will find nine pieces of work, all quite similar and blending into one another which guarantees a 77 minutes listening bliss. Attwood uses minimal soundscapes, tentative guitar melodies and airy ambient textures to recreate these gems. 'V2' is my favorite track here. It seems to nudge carefully towards the ambient jazz scene, something I think Yellow6 would fit in perfectly it he wanted to. On other occasions, such as in 'Broadcast', Attwood strips the whole post rock scene to create something emotional.
That's perhaps the strongest aspect of this album. You will find heaps of emotion in here, a somewhat haunted atmosphere that modestly reflects the world outside our windows. Some of you might shed a few tears while listening to the gloomy 'Panam', others might find hope in the soothing sounds of 'Silent Flight' but I know for sure that every fan on minimal ambient and subdued post rock will highly appreciate these nine pieces of soundcandy. I know I have and I will for a very long time to come.
Serge