aerial
take-off > flight > rest | the new album by Heavy Cloud
aerial
uses the theme of flight
as a metaphor to explore ideas
of creative freedom,
experiences of inner turbulence
and overcoming self-doubt.
Loosely structured into three movements:
take off
flight
and rest;
aerial is a journey through changing environments that echo migratory thought patterns.
Beginning with a suite of tape noise, musique concrète and plunderphonics, the sky opens revealing a flight path that pivots to jazz collage and electronic soundscapes, as the mindflight passes through anxious interior questioning.
Processed field recordings and collected voices are carried on aerial’s wingspan.
Some of these are caught and distorted in the buzz of the hive, or glide on wings through the hum of crosswinds.
My love is an aviary
of small birds
and I must learn
to leave the door ajar . . .
– Karen McCarthy Woolf
From birds and bees, sky and wind, to feelings of flight or fight, fluttering inner monologues and outside influences, aerial is a tone poem about flight found in nature and the imagination.
I have never known birds of different species to flock together.
The very concept is unimaginable.
Why, if that happened, we wouldn't stand a chance!
– The Birds
Aerial is an attempt to engage in half heard conversations with the self, but also with writers and artists who have used flight to express feelings about shifting states of mind, control and pathways of discovery.
Birds, bees, spring, fall – all those subjects that are absolute gifts.
– Sylvia Plath
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all
– Emily Dickinson
aerial | 12 tracks | 38 mins
Created with: tapes, soft synths, prepared samples, found sounds, field recordings, tabletop electric guitar, domestic objects, amplifier, radio, stylophone
Available to stream and purchase on heavycloud.bandcamp.com