Gonzo (BE)

Simon Scott’s ten-part Apart is an album full of mourning for his father, who died in April of last year from the effects of Covid-19. Two days after Scott got word of his death, he took a stroll through New Decoy, a nature reserve in a vast bog landscape on England’s east coast. As a child he often visited this area with his father. It is the birthplace of Brian Eno, which inspired him to On Land. It is also the area where ‘The Dig’ is set, the recent film about the excavation of an early medieval ship, with many shots of the vast expanses of the flat land. During his walk he was struck by the sound of skylarks, birds that courtship flights high in the sky with a high chirping song. It strongly impressed him with the feeling of loss. He made recordings of the birds and weaved them through a composition for piano and electronics. It has become an internalized album, which leaves the same impression of melancholy grandeur as On Land. You can hear Scott musing, as it were, on images from his youth, colored by grief and sun-drenched memories. Towards the end, the larks, an endangered species, disappear from view. It is as if his father has disappeared with the birds. Only the extension remains. Empty, but full of comfort (rvp)