Droning Cats with NRV - Cartography of Sleep

 

Released: December 12

The first album released by this collaboration of two separate projects, Cartography of Sleep takes the listener through a splendid and immersive ambient journey that integrates a multitude of disparate elements into a cohesive yet abstract experience. Droning Cats is the duo Christophe Calis and Jan Delannoy, the former of which plays the multi-part roles of guitarist and electronic tinkerer while the latter brings us the varied and disparate tones of modular synthesis. NRV returns to See Blue Audio in this collaborative release to provide the spacious droning atmospheres that fill up a good portion of these multi-textural soundscapes and to provide a counterweight to the crisp electronics and soaring guitar soling of Droning Cats. It makes for a fascinating listen that is both peaceful and somehow energetic simultaneously.

The opening track introduces us to the body of work with vast droning soundscapes and a sense of slow but gradual movement. However, as we move into the second entry “Slumbering On a Swing,” the energy picks up as the sweetly sustained guitar tones from Christophe and pinging tones that sing out almost a lullaby-esque melody. The remainder of the album leans heavily on this motif with the guitar taking a more and more prominent role in the establishment of these elegant soundscapes. It is really incredible the way in which the sustain of the guitar tone is crafted, giving off these vibes of slowly floating away as the sound slowly decays. 

This is one of those albums that hit the mark with its title. It feels like a slowly and floating journey of mapping out the process of drifting off to sleep. The sonic imagery is fantastic with such beautifully crafted tones that feel like floating. You could listen to it as you drift to sleep, but then you would miss the subtlety and beauty of it. Amazing dreams would probably await you though.