But for some reason, since I've had a lot more to say recently than I have in the past, I figured I should get one. I'll probably put everything from life events to cryptic messages to music reviews (or just recommendations) and more here... and I guess I'll start with the third one.
Lately, I've been discovering a bunch of music, but the album that really stood out among all the stuff I've found or been told about was JT Bruce's Universica. I sort of stumbled across it randomly actually, while browsing through the great website that is Last.fm. From what I've found out about it after having done a little research, it's the solo effort of one person, and even without having known that, I thought it was a stunning album. The tracks on the album are titled after named stars in the universe, going from Bellatrix to Capella to Betelgeuse, and back home to Sol, so I guess as much as an instrumental album can be a concept album, this one is. It works as a cosmic journey of sorts.
The instruments on this album are for the most part what you would expect from a progressive rock album, drums, bass, electric and acoustic guitars, keyboards... but what really pulls me in is the keyboards. Of course, the music is very well written as well, but the synths and samples are so well done that they just... pull you in. At least that's what happened to me. The track Betelgeuse is a prime example of this. When you are listening, if you close your eyes and let your imagination work a little, you can just see the planets and stardust swirling around you. It evoked some very vivid imagery for me.
In my opinion, there are also no weak tracks on the album. Each one holds a different kind of interest, yet they are all uniform enough that they flow fairly well from start to finish as an album.
But anyway, an album like Universica is better to simply be heard rather than talked about. And here's the kicker: it's free. You can download it here: http://www.subjectruin.net/Music/Universica.htm.
Or you can listen to it here:
http://www.last.fm/music/JT+Bruce/Universica.
