Umber is Alex Steward: an English musician who records beautiful, delicate ambient music in a bedroom-studio out in the English countryside. With an approach to craft that reminds me of fellow countrymen – Message to Bears – Umber’s Morning’s Pass conjures the sleep-filled moments of the early morning, the coming of the dawn, and the final slide into waking. Here’s a bit more from the release: “Morning’s Pass resists the cliché of instrumental builds by mirroring the very sensation of the sun rising. Rather than developing in loudness, Alex subtly encourages then winds down the music – just as dawn signals the arrival of day, but also the gentle recession of the night. As a result, the listener is happily suspended in an intoxicating and immersive experience, hovering in mist-covered horizon normally only witnessed by the early-risers.”
Continue reading “Music for a Rainy Day: Umber – Morning’s Pass”