McKinley Foster writes and produces electronic music as Core Memory. He recently released his first album entitled Align. The music is instrumental and is in the spirit of artists like Four Tet, Prefuse 73 and other like-minded artists.
“Below” is the first track. The track revolves around spoken word which was really the focal point of the song. I liked the music which surrounded the spoken word and the most brilliant part was the rising synth which sounds a bit like bubbles. The spoken word did feel like it was attempting to make some deeper philosophical point. I thought the album really started to get going with “Night Walk?” This song has a good amount of movement and a nice balance between lush and serene atmosphere and a more driving rhythm section. “Moon Dream” is a solid track that revolves around a strobing and pulsating rhythm. The song sparkles with elements and my favorite part were the horns. There’s a lot going on at this point and it almost felt like there were too many melodies for my brain to register. I think there were a couple elements that were mixed as lead. “Next Stop Elizabethtown” a down tempo song that definitely felt dark and as if it was a track for the night. The melodies on this song are easier to latch on to with the guitar and piano having a symbiotic relationship. “Bouquet” is a bit sensual to my ears while feeling cosmic and otherworldly. Interesting combo. “Confident Ghost” is a nice change in mood and a highlight. It’s a bit playful while also a bit haunting. The guitar melodies were great. “Pain Perdu” has a lot of momentum. It’s a longer track but is quite dynamic and has some moments which soar. There’s more great guitar action on “Formative Years” which is quite technical and I liked the acoustic touch here. It sounded like a classical guitar. “When The Trees Bow Down Their Heads” felt emotionally neutral to me but still a solid song. The album ends with “Align” and this is very atmospheric. There’s some dramatic spoken word but it needed to be EQ’ed or compressed differently because it was hard to make out. I would say fans of artists like Jon Hopkins, Caribou, Four Tet and other like-minded artists will appreciate this most. There’s some solid work here and I encourage you to check it out.
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