Sam Destral - Part 2

 

Released: June 24

Part 2 appears to be the first release from musician Sam Destral in well over a decade. The name of the album is not a continuation from a previous album, but rather it appears to be a continuation from his previous work as a whole, which appears to end sometime in 2012. Regardless, his return to music making is quite excellent in terms of the atmospheres he shapes into long-form ambient pieces. More impressive is that it seems to be almost entirely guitar driven with clever use of of effects and overdubs. At four tracks and just over fourty minutes, Destral brings us four distinct scene that all have their own particular vibe with some being a bit darker in tone and others feeling more bright and shiny. 

For some of the grayer tones, “Mt. Fuji” provides a very slow and somewhat ethereal tone with randomized reflections of the soft plucks that carry things along. As mentioned, the best way I can think of it is a gray sky behind a tall mountain, giving off a foreboding yet also strangely inviting energy too. As if it beckons despite its imposing appearance. But following this oddly picturesque scene, we are transported to “Adnan Menderes Airport (Revisited)” which is an almost total one-eighty from the previous track. Soft shaker percussion keeps a rudimentary rhythm as soft strums are paired with flighty plucks amid a serenely sun-splashed atmosphere. I love the way this one seems to pick up out of nowhere in the middle as the tone on the guitar becomes suddenly very crunchy and then just goes back to the soft clean tone just as quickly afterwards. 

The remaining two tracks on the album carry a much more atmospheric quality, very akin to a noisy dark ambient release. With these two, you can often barely tell that it is a guitar making those sounds except for a few more obvious moments. However, I really like the way these two play into the overall structure of the album as it seems to go from darker and noisier to brighter and more gentle over the course of the four tracks. It’s a great progression that makes it feel like an excellent evolution over forty minutes.