Afterglow By Kevin Kendle

 

Afterglow

By

Kevin Kendle

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

Ever since 1992 I have been enthralled with one of the finest electronic music performers the world is ever likely to see, yes ok, I’m being biased, but over the years and the albums gone, I think Kevin Kendle is right up there with the giants, he has proved himself time and time again. That 1992 album was called Watermusic and Kevin will be the first to admit his music and its production has come a long way since then, now with the arrival of his latest release Afterglow, we have a moment to stop, breathe and enjoy, one of the most beautiful albums I have had the pleasure to listen to for decades.

The opening offering is lush and coloured and called Firelight, it reminds me of those lazy hazy days of mid-summer, the flame of a candle that keeps those pesky bugs at bay, and the vastness of the cosmos above us all. Kevin’s relaxed synth pads and delightfully layered tones say it all on a beginning that is so soothing to the soul.

I can truly appreciate this piece; I live on an island where every sunset is angelic and utterly encapsulating, this next offering takes that and emboldens it further and its name, Sunfall. The cascading tone and timbre here reminds me partly of Meditation 1 by the great Laraaji, here is a piece crisp yet tranquil, uplifting yet serene, and flowing yet dreamy, simply put Kendle’s performance here is perfection.

Twilight sums up this album perfectly, the long drawn musical narrative and soothing synths create a piece that would be perfect to drift off into a dream to. Kevin’s keyboards on this melodic and charming offering really do hold the listener close and tenderly, this whole track ushers forth a level of heart felt musical love like no other.

The chime at the start of At Dusk is so delightful, the piece itself is full of rich flavours, but its healing properties are so very palpable, here is the most meditative manifestation I have heard from the artist in a long while, and I adore every second of it. The repeating motif builds, and as we listen we fade into a peace filled reverie of total calm.

Skyglow is a track that reminds me of tones and vibrations passed; its floating narrative here is so redolent of artists like Tomita, but even more so, Kevin’s old friend Iasos. Fortunately for us Kevin has produced a tempting long form track of just over nine minutes for us to enjoy.  If we listen to this track carefully one can drift off into a timeless space of great tranquillity, and it may even remind us of his days as Aetherium and albums like Healing Gold.

Allow yourself to breathe into this next segment of great beauty called Below the Horizon. Now I must state that at this point I had to quickly save my work as I had lost myself totally in Afterglow, trust me that is an easy thing to do, so with that done and a sigh of relief given, I fall arms open into this next piece called Below The Horizon. With its angelic like harmonics and its space like tones, we can be literally amazed at the level of serenity this artist can create, a track of utterly imperturbable energies indeed.

Our last but one reverie is entitled Strange Light, this piece reminds me of past meditations I have done, the harmonic convergence and the lush atmospherics contained within are simply breath taking, whilst the concluding offering, which is proudly the title track Afterglow, tops the whole project off with a level of class like none before. Afterglow is the ultimate meditative long form opus of just over 11 minutes, and is simply addictive to bathe within its sonic soothing narrative too.

Afterglow by Kevin Kendle is the album that we have all be eagerly awaiting, and upon its arrival it certainly didn’t disappoint, in fact, as ambient albums with a penchant to manifesting a healing vibe go, Afterglow has to be one of the best I have heard this century with utter ease, it is a release that will please all that have the good sense to purchase a copy as soon as they can, this has to be an award winning album surely.