Liquid Planet (Chillax Music) By David Vito Gregoli & Ricky Kej

 

Liquid Planet (Chillax Music)

By

David Vito Gregoli & Ricky Kej

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

Listening to this new release Liquid Planet (Chillax Music), was just the spoonful of relaxation and healing I needed to kick my day off with, and quite frankly the combination of the twin powers of environmental positivity in David Vito Gregoli and Ricky Kej was simply too good to pass up, this symbiotic pastiche of world vibes and new age music, with an added chilled aspect was the perfect remedy in my view.

The journey begins with the uplifting narrative of Summer, a multi-instrumental delight if there ever was one; soft synth pads and rich textures gift us the best moment of any album I have heard recently in this style to start with.

One of the most pleasing things about this release is the duration of the compositions, the shortest being just under 6 minutes, thus allowing the listener to roam freely within the arrangement. Here on the following electrifying creation we have the pleasure of sampling the beauty of Winter and its cold embrace, pictured perfectly in music by the artists.

Naturally following winter comes Spring, there is a gentleness here that literally ushers in new growth and fresh life, the instrumentation used manifests some of the most attractive work on the album, the fretless bass, piano and globally infused arrangements, gave this uplifting piece the sparkling energy it desired.

One of my personal favourite seasons of all is now Autumn, but when you live where I do here in Cyprus, it’s not difficult to see why, it’s like this track glorious, changeable, colourful and multi-textured, listening to this deeper manifestation was something extremely pleasing, especially the additional female vocal hovering like an ethereal wind in the backdrop of the piece.

Mahatma (Chill Mix) had a start that created an almost spiritual sense to its own reality, the eastern vocalisations and chants doubly so, this piece flowed with an abundance of love and respect, and the flute contained within soared to take the listener to new heights of both expectation and gratitude.

I have three main loves in the natural world, mountains, rivers and forests, they can be vast and huge reminders of the grand stage we are allowed to roam upon and within, on our beautiful planet. On the track Forests, I am taken to deep dark woodlands of peace and tranquillity, a sanctuary where I can sit and enjoy this arrangement with the backdrop it deserves. The mood and energy of this synth based opus is extremely powerful and deeply poignant.

Another idyllic location is a Waterfall; here Kej comes into his own bringing a mysterious and yet all-consuming power to the arrangement, this is one slice of instrumental music that allows us to appreciate the sheer raw power of this location; the cry now is to keep the water flowing and clean, on this track the artists have manifested an anthem of hope and healing. One also has to give a special mention to the various guitars used from acoustic to electric here; it gave the overall narrative a Dire Straits Private Investigations feel to the song.

I have spent most of my life as a young man by rivers, and in my day I became an advocate for keeping them clean, safe and alive, so bearing in mind Ricky Kej’s stance on environmental issues I align still to this day that our rivers, our worlds blood vessels should be kept free from pollution, poison and human laziness. Here on the track River we have a global cry for care of our natural environment to be taken. The deep and reflective instrumental style here hits the spot beautifully, and creates a poignant juxtaposition of both beauty and destruction; it’s all in our hands.

One of the most important gifts our planet gifts us is Rain, we know this to be true after having our first rains for over 7 months last week, here Gregoli and Kej are joined by one of the most sensitive vocalists across the globe in Kimberly Haynes as they paint a graphic musical vista of a wonderful rain soaked landscape, the track has a delightful sense of reflection and melody and the voice of Haynes sets the whole arrangement off perfectly.

Our concluding track is another favourite subject of mine, Clouds. Right now we have a range of pileus scooting across the oceans horizon. For me both artists have manifested a perfect depiction of this grand theatre in the sky, one that hardly anyone ever seems to notice, but still carries on regardless, and this breath taking opus is simply the best way with which to conclude the album.

Liquid Planet (Chillax Music) by David Vito Gregoli & Ricky Kej is a graphic reminder from a three times Grammy winner, and a couple of extremely passionate environmentalists, that  now is the time to make sure we still have a world to live upon in the near future. This is a perfect release from its production, presentation, compositional prowess, and performances contained within. If you adore truly great instrumental music, you really must at all costs have this within your collection.