Alex Henry Foster And The Long Shadows - 'A Measure Of Sound And Shapes' Album Review

Tracklist:

1. Thoughtful Decent

2. Mechanical Revision

3. A Mind’s Tapestry

4. Cinematic Insight

5. Self-Portrait

6. Sorrowful Bouquet

7. Manic View

8. A Gesture, A Present

9. Alchemical Connection

10. Reflective Ascent

It would be an understatement to say that Alex Henry Foster has had a hard few years recently. Just as he was settling into touring his albums “Windows In The Sky” and “Standing Under Bright Lights”, he was forced off the road due to a serious heart condition that required immediate surgery. The resulting recovery time was prolonged, leaving the optimistic singer without a voice for a while and far too much time to reflect and have inwards.

What would be an incredibly daunting time for most would see the artist challenging themselves by coming completely out of their comfort zone and finding be ways to adapt their creative process. “A Measure of Sound and Shapes” follows on directly from his last release “Kimiyo” and forms a collecting of work shares a genetic dna with “Voyage à la Mer”, a motion picture that he is working on that is due for release in the spring of 2025. So much for slowing down a little and resting.....

“A Measure of Sound and Shapes” differs to “Kimiyo” just like “Kimiyo” differs to his previous work, even though there is a commonality that runs through it all. "Kimiyo" featured Alex and Ben Lemelin from the Long Shadows creating music together while Japanese-Canadian artist Momoka Tobari, who provided a voice to Alex’s words. “A Measure of Sound and Shapes” is instrumental, recorded live to allow the songs their moments to breath naturally rather than being corralled or moulded into something else.

The resulting songs are more ambient than his preview work. They ebb and flow like the tide, rising and falling like a leaf on the breeze. Alex informs is "I was fascinated by the slow awakening of colors growing into one another, evolving into a stream, and redefining impermanent beauties. It reminded me of the bright shining lights dancing over the ocean of crystal pieces covering the awakening morning in the middle of the desert, where silence murmurs about inner peace and where wind carries the nature of what it feels like to be truly alive.” The Music absolutely represents this.

There are no beats to follow, other than the pulses that run through each song. This allows the listener to fully submerge themselves within each track. It's like taking your hand and placing it on your chest, feeling each breath as you inhale and exhale. There's introspection to each piece, naturally growing along your thoughts as you let it envelope your thoughts. Guitar layers build on each other, sliding between the spaces. Nothing feels forced here. Each track is it's own soundtrack and it's own individual mood, but you can tell it’s a part of a larger whole. Each has it’s own movement, almost like a minimal symphony to allow you to fully submerge yourself in it's soundscape. Sounds rise, fall and intertwine, it's sonic heart pulses with movement and vitality. Each could easily bleed into each other to form a much longer movement.

There's meditation here, wordless but with a power that only sound can possess. I have listened to it several times as I travel around on public transport or walking through woods and by the river Clyde. It fits naturally as a feed directly into your ear on headphones as it does on speakers in your living room. In fact, as I write this review I'm sitting with a coffee in my local cafe, the sounds of the album mixing naturally with the outside world that leaks in.

Initially, I thought that I wouldn't listen to this much but, over the past week or so, I find myself reaching for it so I can indulge in it's tapestry and cadences as it bathes me. It inspires introspection and contemplation while you soak yourself in it's fragile beauty. Ultimately, “A Measure of Sound and Shapes” is the soundtrack of your soul as you journey through this life; it inspires inward and outward reflection and contemplation with each musical breath it takes.