As far as I am aware, I have not yet reviewed any artist from New Zealand, so it was nice to be contacted recently by Andrew McCully of Look To Windward who is originally from that lovely country, but now based in The Netherlands.
The accompanying explanation provided by Andrew stated that he feels that his music will appeal to fans of acts such as Devin Townsend, Porcupine Tree, Martin Grech or Karnivool, so some class markers there. The album The Last Scattering Surface, which is the project’s third album, was released on May 31st of this year, and you can pop along to the Bandcamp page at https://looktowindward.bandcamp.com/album/the-last-scattering-surface to listen, purchase (a physical version is being released the day I edit this review), and also some rather nice merchandise. You should also check out the website at https://looktowindwardmusic.com/ Before you do so, why don’t we here at Lazland give it a go at persuading you?
There are eleven pieces of music on the album, and it includes an epic suite split into three constituent parts.
McCully provides a multi-instrumental masterclass with vocals, guitars, bass, beat-boxing, keys, and programming. He is joined by Emily Rice, who provides vocals on several pieces, and vocalists Benjamin Morley and Oriol Nieto, together with Andy Smith who plays lead guitar on a couple of tracks I name below.
Autumn’s Loss is our short introduction to proceedings. It is a slightly brooding overture, with some deep programming, contemplative piano, and nice acoustic guitar work, with Rice providing voices over this. A good start, and this leads to Why Ask? I have embedded this below, and you are immediately struck by the deep, pulsing bass riff, which is class. The voice of Rice is well mixed, and there is a real melodic post rock attitude at times to her vocals, as with McCully who we hear for the first time. I like the riffs and the general sense of organised chaos behind the words, which have a sense to me of a stranger in his adopted home. This is a track which to these ears deserves some commercial radio airplay, with some extremely catchy hooks.
Relic follows, and features Morley, the original collaborator of McCully, on vocals, and he combines well with Rice in some very dextrous and questing voices. There are some great thundering riffs as we start, and as we develop, this is a fine rock track, with thoughtful progressive rock interspersed with some clear commercial sensibilities, McCully having done a fine job mastering all this.
When You Go Away is a shorter track, released as a single, and the vocals are provided by Nieto, with a mighty guitar riff by Smith. This is a track with more than a touch of mystery, delicate and very quietly powerful, Nieto building up the tension and power as he works along the song. The official video is embedded below. I really like this track, brooding and intense.
Dance of the Futile is the first epic, and the longest standalone track here. Morley again gives us the vocals, but what stands out for me on this are the exceptional keyboards and programming, especially the drumbeats, which give us a sense of eastern ritual in a track which I think is rooted in a more real-world scenario of a relationship or friendship crisis, the spoken words of McCully having a dark undertone. The riffs are very heavy, and this is a fine slab of modern prog metal, powerful but turning wonderfully fragile at about the eight minute mark when we are treated to a more traditional set of progressive rock keys, these towering over an electronica noise fest, the bass asserting itself as the riffs again crunch. There are some very clever mood changes here, and the track is a contender for “epic of the year” in my awards, because it is all done so cleverly.
And so, to The Mercury Suite, and there is an official video of part two, River Mercury, embedded for you below. It commences with Earth Overture, the final part entitled Theia Arrived One Fateful Day, the eponymous planet the subject of a theory suggesting it collided with ancient earth, with the debris coalescing to form our satellite Moon, so there is a very interesting scientific and mythological story in this suite.
The weather of earth introduces the suite, and there is some quite gorgeous acoustic guitar work set against delicate keys and the voice of Rice before McCully introduces the main vocal which has a nice harmony with Rice. A very strong introduction.
The second part takes a heavier hue altogether, with some very hard-hitting riffs. I think the video production quality is top notch, the theory of the living river of the element rather fascinating. A deeply satisfying single release and, if you will pardon the pun, somewhat mercurial.
The final part opens far quieter, some more class acoustic guitar work and an understated beat, with Rice providing us with a beautiful vocal telling the story of the creation of a world (what a thought that is, birth from chaos, made of metal elements). The guitar solo from Smith is simply gorgeous, reminiscent of Knopfler in its execution, certainly full of emotion. This musician is somebody I would love to explore more. There is some exceptional orchestration in the programming, and the whole piece is moving in its pastoral heart but building up to a delicious intensity of noise as it progresses, including Smith providing a brief dystopian solo leading into the heavier core of the entire album reasserting itself with something of a vengeance before settling down in the very last segment to a delicious quiet as the new world becomes the familiar sight we see now.
Spin has a heavy core bringing back some of the chaos we heard earlier, although I might add that Rice’s vocals on this could easily fit within some of the psychedelic retro music I heard in the 90’s. The changes in tempo, noise, and intent are a rollercoaster ride for the listener, something which would require an entire review or written thesis on its own in a staggeringly good piece of music that I simply cannot describe adequately – it is something which needs to be experienced, a heady mix of so many influences and originality which leaves me in awe. It will feature strongly on one of my wider media outlets, believe me, because it is stunning.
The Condition is the penultimate track. It opens with clever beat-boxing and a relentless set of riffs. Rice when she enters is intriguing, speaking of not biting with her entire set of teeth, teasing about craziness, this set against a distinctly fantasy led set of chords and noises, in a piece which can best be described as operatic in its core, the spoken word providing for more menace and atmosphere, the track as it progresses providing very satisfying guitar solos, throbbing underscore, and vocal harmonies.
We close with New Love, another shorter bookend featuring a lovely acoustic guitar, one of the standouts of this album, the ability to provide a pastoral element set against some very hard and heavy work. The programming and keyboards create a vision of a fresh start, the spoken word taking the theme of the opening autumn loss, but with the chance in summer of taking this back. The rain brings us down gently to the close.
The Last Scattering Surface is another of those many hundreds of albums which I doubt I would have heard without the benefit and privilege of being able to write and speak about intelligent music, and it is a huge pleasure for me to be able to introduce it to you. This is a fine album, and should appeal, in my opinion, to a wider audience than the fans of the acts I referred to above. It has a fine eclectic mix, well performed, deeply moving in parts, and a work which screams out for attention.
There you go. Hopefully, I have persuaded you to take yourselves along to that Bandcamp page!