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review by Dene Bebbington Scottish duo Jon Short and David Jones (aka. deep sky divers) offer us more of their piano led quality music on an album that was recorded over four years between 2000 and 2004. This time span encompasses some of their other albums like Natural Power and Highlands & Skylands, so fans of their music can expect to hear familiar styles while also appreciating that Jon and David are by no means resting on their laurels. Getting the album underway is my favourite track "Skylander". Starting off with airy synth lines breezing in and out it eventually bursts into life with a percussive drum beat and an inspiring piano melody. I can imagine that this would be a great track to play loud in a car while driving down an open road - especially in the highlands of Scotland. A curiously successful blend of the chilled out alongside uplifting tunes is what one gets on Incandescent, with the occasional hints of traditional Gaelic music thrown in for good measure. The musicians also have a knack for taking a fairly simple but very pleasing melody and making a great track from it by the judicious addition of other sounds. This is exemplified in "Gradually Becoming Cyclonic" where a repeating refrain, played by something like a xylophone, gets going and is joined by synth pads. The piece evolves to include a drum beat and then a short stretch of what may be an accordion giving the piece a Gaelic flavour; the reason for the title then becomes clear as we hear someone reading a shipping forecast beneath the music. I only recently discovered the music of deep sky divers and in that short time some of their albums have had many plays in my CD player. Incandescent contains some real gems besides some tracks that don't work quite so well, nevertheless it gets my recommendation. |
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