Slow rewind
Feb 16, 2022, 02:46 PM
A collaboration between Cities and Memory and Elska built from a field recording of waves on La Guardia beach, Elba, Italy.
Cities and Memory: "The recording of the waves from Elba conjured up a mood that I felt an instrumental track alone couldn't communicate. Having become a fan of Elska's music after she contributed to our Inferno project last year, I thought her voice would be ideal for what I had in mind and approached her with the idea. In the instrumental track, the waves are at the heart, running through its centre and chopped up and timed so they undulate in time with the bassline. The guitars and synths are the sparkling crests of the waves as they wash over the rocks from where the recording was made, and Elska brings the missing ingredients."
Elska: "Having been a fan of Stuart's Cities and Memory project for quite some time, I was delighted at the opportunity to collaborate on a beautiful, instrumental composition that he was working on. Intuitively, I tend to hear overlapping vocal melodies that swell and repeat. Hearing the wave samples from an unfamiliar town in Italy immediately sparked patterns of nostalgia, longing, and wonder in both the vocal phrasings and lyrics. The wave crashes represent milestones and moments in time. We slowly rewind back to days where we felt fearless and comforted by love. We are constantly reaching for this ecstasy amidst the fear. I believe we are meant to dance and progress with nature; ebbing and flowing with the tides and recessions. The guitar helps build momentum; emulating the endless oscillations. The vocal layers swell with these gestures; creating a sense of longing and hope as we keep returning to older days."
Cities and Memory: "The recording of the waves from Elba conjured up a mood that I felt an instrumental track alone couldn't communicate. Having become a fan of Elska's music after she contributed to our Inferno project last year, I thought her voice would be ideal for what I had in mind and approached her with the idea. In the instrumental track, the waves are at the heart, running through its centre and chopped up and timed so they undulate in time with the bassline. The guitars and synths are the sparkling crests of the waves as they wash over the rocks from where the recording was made, and Elska brings the missing ingredients."
Elska: "Having been a fan of Stuart's Cities and Memory project for quite some time, I was delighted at the opportunity to collaborate on a beautiful, instrumental composition that he was working on. Intuitively, I tend to hear overlapping vocal melodies that swell and repeat. Hearing the wave samples from an unfamiliar town in Italy immediately sparked patterns of nostalgia, longing, and wonder in both the vocal phrasings and lyrics. The wave crashes represent milestones and moments in time. We slowly rewind back to days where we felt fearless and comforted by love. We are constantly reaching for this ecstasy amidst the fear. I believe we are meant to dance and progress with nature; ebbing and flowing with the tides and recessions. The guitar helps build momentum; emulating the endless oscillations. The vocal layers swell with these gestures; creating a sense of longing and hope as we keep returning to older days."