Up In The Sky (2022)
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Up In The Sky is a sequel, to my 2020 album Sunday, Someday; mirroring the relaxed vibes while taking the mood in more of a night-time direction. The album explores a summer campfire type feeling with friends, looking up to the stars and bathing in nostalgia, calm and the beauty of the night. This album came about from a couple of music box style lullaby tracks I had worked on but had no place for on an album. Not wanting them to go to waste, I explored the relaxed evening mood including sitting around the campfire with friends, some time alone with the night air, and finally observing the sunrise with hope for the future.
Using my previous video game soundtrack experience, I picked out comforting and rich synth sounds to accompany the bells of the music box, and highlight the loneliness of the lead synth on later tracks. The drums are hip-hop inspired in much of the album, with a touch of lo-fi. The album artwork was created by Freych, a talented pixel artist whose work I came across on Twitter, and instantly felt would fit the vibes of the album. The character on the album cover is the same character as ‘Sunday, Someday…’ illustrating a progression in their journey, having previously spanned the line between dawn and dusk above the Earth on that album cover.
In making music and promotional videos for this album, I was able to have a summer campfire, just like the ones which inspired the feel of the album. This is featured in the videos for ‘Embers’ and ‘Campfire’ below. I also shot additional footage of the compositional process with the help of Jack Rowland.
This album is a tribute to friends, past and present who have influenced my musical style in many different ways. ‘Summer Song’ is a track which was co-written by Jonathan Wentworth originally for guitar and vocals, which we never quite managed to complete. ‘To Absent Friends’ is a track dedicated to those friends with whom I’ve fallen out of contact as life goes on, and anyone who’s been a part of my journey as a composer.
Embers - (Video)
Embers embodies the campfire vibes of the album. In making a video for this track, I was able to once again experience the heat and nostalgic vibes of being around a campfire.
The big flames dying down to mere embers represents the cooling of emotions over time and things which were once intense becoming less so. I make a cameo in the video around halfway through.
Towards Dawn - (Video)
Towards dawn is about awaiting a hopeful tomorrow, a sunrise that’s just around the corner. The video puts together scenes I shot while making the promotional video for this album, and a particularly bright moon which I witnessed at around 5am one morning.
To Absent Friends - (Video)
To Absent Friends is a toast to those we don’t speak to as often as we would look, or perhaps at all. Wishing well to those with whom we have fallen out of contact for whatever reason, as a busy world moves on and on. The clips from this video were shot during the compositional process of the album.
Campfire - (Video)
Sitting around the campfire with friends, making memories. The glow of the fire and the flowing drinks create an unmatched atmosphere. The video is composed of some of the more upbeat moments from the Embers video shoot, including the burning of a Christmas Tree which was far more flammable than expected.
