The Cosmic Zero is the solo project of Landon Jenkinson, a musician from Portland, Oregon, who recently released a self-titled album The Cosmic Zero. He mentions: “I had around eight songs that tied together lyrically around existential themes of life, death, non dualism, the divine mystery and paradox. I have an insatiable curiosity about the fabric of reality, and treat music as a sort of personal therapy where I can unweave the tangled web of my mind and create a landscape in which I can find peace.”
In my experience Jenkinson is like countless other artists, not just musicians, trying to gain perspective through the creative process. The album contains eleven songs and the tone of the album revolves around contemplation and melancholy. The album starts with “Seasons” and you are greeted with warm acoustic guitar and vocals. His delivery is dramatic, pensive and melancholy as he whispers about internal existential questions. Jenkinson sings “I have tried so hard / hard to calm the waves / waves inside my head but I somehow got this far tell me where I am, am I already dead?” “More of the Same (A Coward's Refrain)” contains strummed chords and lamenting vocals. The mood is similar to the first song with lots of contemplation and worry. “Nothing Happens” is a warm soundscape I wasn’t expecting. It’s pretty straightforward with not much more than fluctuating sine waves, filters and reverb. “Lost to Stay '' contains the same sentiment but we get a female vocalist. The lyrics seem to suggest similar thought patterns. She sings “I'm not bewildered by existence / Fearful for what's in the distance / Sitting here as hours pass singing to a single cast.” As the album progresses there’s a mix of warm new age sounding soundscapes that reminded me of something might hear at meditation sessions or a spa. The last song “Truth is Cliche” is which contains some solid electronic piano work. This album reminded me of being in my 20’s again where I was sort of asking myself lots of existential questions. I definitely would go into phases where everything would feel confusing or meaningless which I think is extremely common. Whenever I felt the weight of the world I would read some Albert Camus, listen to Sigur Rós or do metta meditation to feel gratitude. The fact that we have the ability to reflect on our existential situation at all is an evolutionary miracle. When we do this through art as we hear on The Cosmic Zero it somewhat ironically provides the solace we are seeking by making the present moment compelling enough so that these questions don’t have to enter into the equation and we can just exist.
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Critique/insightWe are dedicated to informing the public about the different types of independent music that is available for your listening pleasure as well as giving the artist a professional critique from a seasoned music geek. We critique a wide variety of niche genres like experimental, IDM, electronic, ambient, shoegaze and much more.
Are you one of our faithful visitors who enjoys our website? Like us on Facebook
Archives
May 2024
|