Alaska In Winter

Dance Party in The Balkans

This album got sent to me a little whilst back and every time I've sat down to review it I've found myself lay flat on my back happily day dreaming instead of pounding words into my laptop. You see Alaska In Winter create incredible, thought provoking soundscapes with a wonderous mix of lush instrumentation, electronica and understated vocal harmonies.

The main man behind the Alaska In Winter project is Albuquerque, New Mexico native Brandon Bethancourt, who decided to take his laptop and spend an isolated winter recording in a log cabin in Alaska, he then got together with a number of musicians including the acclaimed duo of Zach Condon (Beirut) and Heather Trost (A Hawk And A Hacksaw) to pepper his musicial visions and complete this evocative album. 

Dance In The Balkans is a joy to hear from start to finish, each and every track helps your mind create vast landscapes of stunning imagery, the music takes you on a journey of discovery without you ever having to leave the comfort of your own home, the impressive instrumentation and beautiful vocals help form a true aural and visionary delight.

The opening track on here, The Homeless And The Hummingbirds sets the tone rather wonderfully, it begins with a gorgeous slice of muted trumpet and a lightly tinkered piano before branching into a mesmeric work of electronic beauty complete with understated vocal harmonies and laidback throbbing bass. From the opening few bars the music captivates the listener and from here on in Alaska in Winter never let go.

Your Red Dress (Wedding Song At Cemetery follows directly on, continuing the grove that Brandon has set, out only this time he adds a few vocal treatments to the mix drawing the listener further into his musical landscape.

The Beautiful Burial Flowers We Will Never See somehow manages to better all that proceeds, it's a beautiful yet mournful piece that opens with strings before taking in wordless vocal harmonies, crashing cymbals and a brief blast of that lone trumpet, the track invokes images of sollutide and remorse and yet somehow still manages to be uplifting in a strange way.

Elsewhere Brandon employs a combination of barely audible and choral vocals, majestic instrumentals and bubbling electronica to further entrance the listener, the title track once again employs those epic trumpets, combining them with harder beats and soulful, uplifting vocals. Whilst Harmonijak mixes an isolated piano with what sounds like an accordian, a crashing cymbal and a haunting vocal wail that urges the listener to block out any outside interference, plug in their headphones and immerse themselves into the sounds of Alaska In Winter.

Dance Party In The Balkans isn't one of those throw-away albums you can chuck on and play in the background, it's not one of those releases that'll have you bouncing up and down or singing along, instead this is an epic album that needs to be listened to intently to reveal the multiple layers of this bewitching release.

If Rhythm & Booze did end of year album polls you could expect this one to be at the very top, it's hard to explain how breathtaking this album really is, so all I can do is highly recommend you pick up a copy and allow yourself time to drift into the music of Alaska In Winter.

Rhythm & Booze Rating 10

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