Andy Fosberry makes visual music. His albums are filled with a series of emotional sketches. Fosberry works in film scoring, but even when it’s not for someone else’s vision the music feels cinematic. Vast soundscapes that feel like grand orchestrations one minute, the next they’re intimate swaths of piano and strings. But always with a tactile, organic touch.
On his latest album for Third Kind Records titled When Comfort Is Stranger, Fosberry creates a series of musical vignettes that almost act as a sort of aural short film collection. Touches of ambient, soundscape, light electronic, and even new age come together for a quiet but mysterious listening experience.
I would imagine that Andy Fosberry could release a record a month and they could all hit completely different genres. He’s that kind of composer. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a prog rock Fosberry coming. Or a nu metal album just about finished. Electro pop? Chamber music? Trip hop? Absolutely. While the prog and nu metal tendencies aren’t so much on display here, When Comfort Is Stranger touches on the others to varying degrees and it’s stunning all the way thru the rabbit hole.
Opener “Here Is Your Eye” touches on those ambient/electro vibes. Bits of Massive Attack pop up, along with Vangelis at times. It’s a bit of a sonic wonder, really. Or take something like “Daytime Insomnia” which is all sultry hard electro with its futuristic vibes and nuanced nods to 90s electronica.
But as a whole this album showcases Andy Fosberry’s ability for nuanced composition and emotional connection. “H In A Circle”, “Lana Del Rey” and “Steps Away From The Centre” all sort of float along on a cloud of ambient drift. From lilting strings and beautiful piano chord progressions to almost new age vibes that drop you into a peaceful lull, the short film narrative really locks in within these tracks. And I feel that “The Plastic Ocean” sort of encapsulates all those quiet moments of confession and contemplation quite perfectly.
When Comfort Is Stranger is yet another stunning release from one of the best. Multifaceted, far-reaching, and emotionally connected, Andy Fosberry makes music here that resonates and ignites the mind and heart.
7.9 out of 10
‘When Comfort Is Stranger’ is available now thru Third Kind Records. Buy it here.
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