PAT STRAWSER

This is mostly Pat, although there is a drummer on a few tracks, and he has multi-layered keyboards to create something which at times feels very Canterbury, is at others more full-on jazz and yet others where he is moving into more eclectic areas of keyboards. The music can be complex and complicated, in your face and dynamic, or it can be more laid-back with restraint and control. One of the real positives about this release is one never knows exactly which way it is going to go as it can be powering one second and then almost loungecore the next, soft jazz giving way to something far more dramatic. One thing that does stay a constant, however, is a feeling of beauty and adoration which permeates everything. The cover, a chair in a field looking over a scene with mist in the distance, definitely captures the feelings coming out of the music as this is a delight.

They say it is darkest just before the dawn, and to my ears "Darkest Hour" is about the time when the world is slowly coming to life with the birds reminding us of our links to nature and how important it is for all of us to live in harmony with each other. The piano is wonderful, and the result of the layers and harmonies is to deliver something quite special indeed. This is a thoroughly enjoyable album which only gets better the more it is played.

There is fusion, but he is coming at it from areas of synthwave, electronic, Canterbury and other classic forms of prog, with stylings which are more Vangelis than Jarre, with hints of Wakeman but little of the bombast of Emerson. It is a pleasant enough album, with much of it quite middle of the road, which makes for an easy listening experience for anyone into this style of music. It is something which needs to be played on headphones as the best way to get the most out of this is by allowing oneself to be fully immersed in the music and be taken on a journey as opposed to attempting to listen to it in the background as then there is the risk that the nuances will get somewhat lost. Looking at his site it is clear that Pat has continually been active in the music scene, and I look forward to hearing more from him in the future.