Album Review: Solar Circuit, One Around the Sun

Album Review by Ashley Feller

Solar Circuit’s debut album One Around the Sun displays much promise for the jamtronica genre of music. This is an album that absolutely deserves multiple listens as there is so much detail and idiosyncrasies it is impossible to truly appreciate them from the first listen. The album opens with a cool and transcendent track called “Alive”. It’s pretty down tempo, but sets the pace for much more intensity later on in the piece. The syncopation between the lead guitar and percussion is exactly where it should be and sets the mood for quite the mental journey. This is an album that is great for channeling creative thoughts as it has the right amount of continuous ambiance contrasting with beautifully inventive guitar solos. The best quality of the first track is the momentum. The composition continuously escalates to a higher place of listening and then gracefully makes its descent back to a gentle groove.

The female vocals on the second track “The Eye” are gorgeous and placid. Solar Circuit makes excellent use of post modern basso continuo throughout this piece and really for the entirety of the album. The most memorable track in my listening experience was “Bits of Time” because by now the music has reached its peak. I especially enjoyed the fusion of electronic percussion, and organic percussion, namely the vibraslap. It’s simple touches like this that bring character to experimental music. The chromatic climbs nearing the end of the song were also an interesting way to fade into the next song. “Nectar”, which comfortably brings the listener back down to a serene mental state, but then midway through the song tastefully shifts tempos back to something completely dance worthy.

Solar Circuit’s album is a great album to help you get deep in your head. It’s thought provoking, perfect for long drives, shower meditations, or working on tedious projects. This is a band that seems to be mindful of their experimental motifs yet allow themselves the freedom to create music which knows no bounds. Their debut album is available on Bandcamp’s website and it is a definitely a divine listening experience.