Instrumental Edition – The Light: Sarah Louise, Mary Lattimore & Mac McCaughan, William Tyler & Bill Mackay
By Aaron Stein Apr 3, 2019 • 1:42 pm PDT
Sarah Louise: Nighttime Birds & Morning Stars
Following up on last week’s set of more rocking instrumental music, this week we’ve got a more introspective batch of mostly-instrumental new releases for you. First up is Nighttime Birds & Morning Stars from Asheville guitarist Sarah Louise. This is a beautifully enigmatic guitar record. Louise combines improvisation and composition, extended takes and in-studio tinkering, weaving myriad ideas and sounds across eight tracks of gorgeous. Let your mind wander to new places with this must-listen.
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Mary Lattimore & Mac McCaughan: New Rain Duets
If you’re not yet in a deep-breathing state of relaxation, the next album should get you to that place. Harpist Mary Lattimore has been a regular around the RecommNeds, her playing is transfixing, magical meditations whether she is solo or with other musicians. On New Rain Duets she is paired with Mac McCaughan on synthesizers and electronics, a perfect doubling of Lattimore’s ethereal sound. Together the sound is as light as can be, sometimes barely anything at all, but is deep in its minimalism. When the world around you seems a bit too much, let this one take you to that place of inner peace.
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William Tyler: Goes West
William Tyler actually wrote the liner notes for the Lattimore/McGaughan record, and since he has a superb new record of instrumental guitar music out himself, only makes sense to feature it next. Hopefully you are already on the William Tyler bus, but just in case, it’s imperative for any guitar lover to listen to Goes West, early and often as they say. Tyler is at the height of his powers, drawing in a host of excellent guests (including Bill Frisell and Meg Duffy) to help him spin his finger-picked genius. His guitar tells a story, compelling narratives and anecdotes, one after the other, you can’t help but get drawn in for the duration. This is the good shit.
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Bill Mackay: Fountain Fire
Finally, we have an album that, truth be told, is not entirely instrumental, but that’s OK, cause it’s so darn good and fits in perfectly with the other three. While guitarist Bill MacKay does sing on a few songs on his excellent just-released record Fountain Fire, he does a bit of everything else on there, too –- percussion, bass, piano and more. Still, it’s mostly his guitar that shines through, echoing drones, peaking solos and soul-tickling finger-picks; psychedelic, dreamy, inspired; electric and acoustic, sometimes layered on top of each other. Check it out, I think you’ll dig!
