Given my love affair with the gauzey strips of peaceful drone that is Auburn Lull's Alone I Admire, I found myself yearning for more of that drug. I've found it with Landing. Though they go into some folky territory and aren't quite as dense and washed out as Auburn Lull, here we have some decidedly fluffy ear-candy to laze back in.
"Hold Me Under" and "Wrapped Up In Flight" have been said to appeal to Nick Drake fans, but they're nowhere near that ballpark. It's closer to Ida or Papa M's more forlorn moments. While the male/female harmonies are particularly nice on the Low-inspired "To See You," I find that this more dressed-down side of the band is somewhat less appealing than their more glistening passages. These moments, if you let them, will take you to a peaceful place in your mind where you'll want to stay forever. Nevertheless, Landing are trying to keep things from getting monotonous and are commendably successful with their grounded/celestial tone alternation.
This is not driving music. It's not particularly workable as background music either. This is for those times when you want to feel sucked up in some benevolent, weightless void where the mind can detach itself from it's earthly trappings. There's a bittersweet tone to the proceedings that feels like letting go, but without losing the hope that you can get a grip once again. It also works splendidly as a sedative if, like me, you need to go to sleep to music. Good stuff. Nothing new, but a satisfyingly earnest addition to the musical realm of guitar drift lullabies.
1. Wings of Light
2. Hold Me Under
3. Close Your Eyes, Slowly
4. Wrapped Up In Flight
5. To See You
6. It Is Shining
7. Breathing
8. Tell Myself
More about: Landing
