Glimmer

iTunes Review

The third studio album by Polish musician Michal Jacaszek (and his first for Ghostly International) continues his project of reinventing classical music by blending traditional baroque instrumentation with well-crafted electro-ambient textures. Before editing the movements and compositions that comprise Glimmer, Jacaszek tracked the instruments in various European churches to capture the richest-sounding tones possible. “Goldengroove” opens with a haunting beauty, as delicate string arrangements and harpsichord notes play against gritty static and what sounds like the pops, crackles, and hiss of an old vinyl record. Spanning just more than six minutes, “Evening Strains To Be Time's Vast” is Glimmer's longest track. It builds slowly on a gradual swell of bass-heavy woodwinds and strings, which form a wall of sound before Jacaszek’s decrepit textures seep in and unravel the song. It's beautiful and disturbing all at once. “Only Not Within Seeing of the Sun” suits the album’s title with sparkling bells, triangles, and chamber strings.