Marie Wilhelmine Anders
A jewel full of gentleness. My favorite track is definitely "Reflective Vibrations" with its steady flow and wonderful pads.
Favorite track: Reflective Vibrations.
See Blue Audio: ambient / electronic / beatless / cinematic / downtempo / eclectic / introspective… Shade rather than light...
‘Chromatherapy' – Fragile X (SBA #013)
Glaswegian producer Fragile X from the Bricolage imprint returns with the successor to ‘Maps for the Lost’, released last July, and the thirteenth release on See Blue Audio. With his debut release for the label, Fragile X created a musical travelogue in five parts, and now on ‘Chromatherapy’ he follows a similar path as all the tracks are again interconnected, but this time they are based around the theme of light with its healing and therapeutic properties for body, mind and soul.
As a sonic storyteller, Fragile X is primarily concerned with creating a musical narrative, something he accomplishes over the six tracks of ‘Chromatherapy’. He has dig deep into his formidable production skills to create a sonic landscape where light and colour are expressed as sound, and patterns of light and colour become music. He uses a rich and vibrant musical palette as his toolkit creating warm washes of sound and beatless panoramas, which are certainly ambient by nature, but also stray into the dramatic tension that characterised ‘Maps for the Lost’ and his recent releases on Bricolage.
The opening tracks, ‘Colour in Motion’ and ‘Todreaminadream’, have a flickering, ethereal quality, and give the sensation of slowly being enveloped in a new realm of light and colour. With ‘Tacenda’ – the concept of things being unspoken or best left unsaid – the music goes a little deeper and a little darker, submerged in phosphorescent strings and echoey synth notes.
Our immersion is complete with ‘Building Castles in Spain’, where a multitude of sounds find a kind of hallucinatory harmony. It feels like an epiphany, a siren call to a deeper understanding of ourselves. With our inner calm restored, ‘Reflective Vibrations’ provides the soundtrack to our re-emergence into nature and the real world, energised by a release of dopamine and filled with euphoria. The balance of the universe is restored.
As the closing track's title, ‘The Sky from Above’, suggests, everything now looks a little different and that’s reflected in a sideways turn in the music. Contemplative piano chords lead into a more brooding style of ambience – the world is still the world, after all – and we are invited to pause and reflect as the light gently recedes. With ‘Chromatherapy’, Fragile X has taken his music to new, higher places and created alternative perspectives. Join him and step into the light.
My favourite track of 2023 has to be this one from Fragile X - one of Skylab Radio's most popular-played tracks and one of our chosen tracks in the 365 Days Of Chill series of 2023. Katy Jay (Radio Presenter, Skylab Radio)
Brilliant production covering an impressive range of IDM, ambient, glitch and even elements of DnB. The Butterfly Effect is especially captivating and is one of many highlights to be found on this EP. Highly recommended! Jeff Haight
what an amazing tapestry of sonic storytelling in this incredible album. My favorite track is a story in and of itself and the use of field recordings all throughout this album makes you feel like you're right in the middle of the narratives presented here. very well done and highly recommended. 10/10. Scott Lawlor
The forthcoming "Between Waves" from The Album Leaf, their first in six years, is layered and expansive, grounded in mournful melodies. Bandcamp New & Notable Jul 18, 2016
Fragile, breathtaking music from French American artist Lyli J, lit up by softly glowing synths and gentle vocal melodies. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 11, 2024
Suplington’s “After Life” is a transcendent mix of beachside field recordings, strings, & ambience, making for a blissful, relaxing listen. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 18, 2019