17SEPTEMBER1981 — Nucleus

Before getting to the Album of the Year list, let me introduce you to a local Ambient artist named 17SEPTEMBER1981, aka Mr. Pick. I’ve known him for quite some time as a guitar from another Post-Rock act, Afternoon, who released the debut back in 2012. Recently, he just released the streaming his solo debut in early November on his own Youtube channel.

The album cover is quite minimal, but not the music. While the melodies are simple, they give quite a very sweet touch. In addition, all the sounds inside behind these are well layered with a little bit of complexity. The things that stand out from these sounds are reverbs and delays produced by his two Strymon pedals, the Bluesky and the El Capistan respectively. Those beautiful shimmers and swells are all around and it makes me feel like being taken to another spatial dimension. And his airy voices can get along well with all of them.

Along with the aforementioned sound, there are some additional details. One of them is the ascending white noise distortion which can be heard in the opening track, 96560. The other ‘shoegazing’ one is on Far, the cover version of the same song by Strawberry Someday. The acoustic guitars can also be heard in some tracks.

Mr. Pick’s first solo effort here is, by far, simple, but very sentimental in both atmospheres and melodies. And if you’re into Ambient & Post-Rock, this album might be another good choice to listen.

The physical release of the album will be out soon. Check out his page for more details.

Recommended Tracks: Her, Home, Sweet