This week we look at the latest releases from Kral Majales, DenMother and Ghastly Crucifix.
Matt Carter
Kral Majales – Belief in Beauty
On their debut EP Belief in Beauty, the Fredericton quartet Kral Majales combine sparse, poetic lyricism with tight, clean, pop-inspired rock arrangements to create four engaging songs with lyrics that sound as if they were pulled directly from the pages of someone’s diary. Touching on themes of self-doubt, nostalgia, and rocky relationships, Belief in Beauty is like a coming-of-age story in four short chapters. The minimalist approach taken with each of these songs allows plenty of room for your imagination to fill in the blanks. It’s like a game of musical Choose Your Own Adventure that asks, “Whose story are we hearing?”; “Did these two sort out their issues?”; and “Is that person OK?”. A wonderful, thought-provoking debut release.
Denmother – Nicole
This new five track EP from DenMother could easily be described by its overarching sense of minimalism. Sabarah Pilon has nearly perfected the art of simple, effective drum, bass and melody combinations. From the beginning, she has avoided the common temptation of adding one layer too many and has instead created a sound that leaves you expecting more while feeling completely satisfied with what she’s provided.
Guided by a sparse loop, a clap, or a short synth progression, Nicole is the 15 minutes of relaxed stimulation you’ve been craving.
Ghastly Crucifix – January – May 2019
As the title suggests, this release compiles tracks released over the first five months of the year by Fredericton’s Ghastly Crucifix. Combining field recorded sound with minor atmospheric elements of melody to create a series of meditative compositions, January – May 2019 is an eleven track album of minimalist audio vignettes that serve as a perfect escape from the sonic clutter of our daily lives.
Send us your Music!
If you are a New Brunswick artist or group, have new music on the way and would like to be considered for a future edition of Midweek Music Mix, send us the details at gridcitymagazine(at)gmail.com
