James Bernard - Only Now

Released: July 31

The latest album from longtime ambient composer James Bernard, Only Now casts out an incredible aura of pure bliss and elation throughout its twelve track run. The instrumentation is a unique combination of old and new that features an array of vintage gear and digital synths, along with great use of selected field recordings that take us from the natural world to the blank spaces of the artificial world. There's is this fine in ambient music in which an overabundance of field recordings muddies things in a way that feels as through we are just hearing recorded sound art. Conversely, that absence of these sounds can make things sound unnatural in a way makes it feel sterile. Bernard skillfully avoids either extreme, presenting what I could consider an almost perfect balance between the two cases. 

Along with all of the field recordings and synths, Bernard infrequently incorporates more traditional instruments. "Act of Gratitude" is the first song in which a gently plucked and reverbed guitar really stood out to me (although the opening track also features a guitar). In this track, it serves as a perfect compliment to the lush synth harmony as it slowly fades to give the guitar just a moment to pluck out its one or two notes as a serene answer to the harmony. There's also a certain sound in the background that I want to say sounds like wind to me. It provides a certain ebb and flow to the track that seems to move somewhat irrespective of the synth and guitar, giving a subtle filling of the track that you only seem to really notice once it fades from the mix and then returns a short while later. 

With the use of noises, field recordings, and deep harmonies; there are also the unusually bright spots that make themselves known in many of the tracks. Where the aforementioned "Act of Gratitude" had its pieces of guitar,  "Horizontal Journey" utilizes a soft electric piano that peeks out from under the static-y haze and rich harmony of the surrounding track to create something rather inspiring and heartfelt. As with all other things, it is the balance in these tracks that is real magic. The restraint of elements that could otherwise take over the track entirely allow the creation of these beautiful soundscapes.