The Golden Archipelago

iTunes Review

The idea of island life has its everlasting appeal; the quiet isolation from the frantic continental world slows to a meditative crawl. Shearwater began hinting at this slow-moving ethereal grind several albums ago and 2010’s The Golden Archipelago serves as the final act of a trilogy begun with 2006’s Palo Santo and further explored with 2008’s Rook that brings that concept of island inhabitation to musical fruition. “Meridian” begins things with the solemn pulse of Peter Gabriel’s most pastoral work. “Black Eyes” sends Jonathan Meiburg’s atmospheric vocals (think Mark Hollis in latter-day Talk Talk) into the lonely atmosphere. “Landscape At Speed” furthers that feeling of the human spirit hurdling towards an endless horizon as its piano chords hit the waves of rhythm and feedback. While the sound is heavily reliant on thick reverbs and electronically manipulated sounds, the overall vibe is a bucolic one where technology has yet to interrupt the day-to-day ramblings. This odd paradox doesn’t stop tunes such as “Hidden Lakes,” “Castaways,” “Runners of the Sun” and “Uniforms” from effectively rendering the feeling of tribal urgency (“Corridors”) and remote slumber.