{"id":72361,"date":"2021-11-16T19:53:50","date_gmt":"2021-11-16T19:53:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/?p=72361"},"modified":"2021-11-20T06:18:45","modified_gmt":"2021-11-20T06:18:45","slug":"review-of-peardiving-lp-by-the-cocteau-twins-robin-guthrie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2021\/11\/review-of-peardiving-lp-by-the-cocteau-twins-robin-guthrie\/","title":{"rendered":"OCEAN AIRS – Cocteau Twins’ Robin Guthrie Goes Deep On New ‘Pearldiving’ Solo Album"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Cocteau Twins are such an iconic band that any release by a former member is always an event.<\/h4>\n

So Pearldiving, <\/strong><\/em>the first solo album by <\/strong>founder member and guitarist\u00a0Robin Guthrie<\/strong> in nine years, is sure to send hardcore fans into paroxyms of delight.<\/h4>\n

By far the most prolific of the Cocteau’s trio, Guthrie’s Pearldiving<\/em> comes hot on the heels of October’s Mockingbird Love<\/span> <\/strong><\/em><\/a>EP and follows the death of his longterm collaborator Harold Budd<\/strong><\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n

It’s a burst of activity, partly enforced by the restrictions imposed by COVID-19.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter Another Flower<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/span>,<\/strong> released just a few days before the untimely passing of my friend and co-conspirator, I felt the need to break my studio down and build it up again afresh to clear my head,”\u00a0 Guthrie says.<\/p>\n

“The dawn of many of my previous releases was travel. I loved being somewhere new to work but, for a while now, the pandemic hasn\u2019t permitted that. So earlier this year I ‘stayed at home’ and created Pearldiving<\/em>. This is my first instrumental album since Fortune<\/strong><\/em> and I guess I had some feelings to process.”<\/p>\n

After more than 40 years in the business, Guthrie is not the type of leopard to change his spots and\u00a0Pearldiving <\/em>is precisely what you’d expect from such a master of soundcraft.<\/p>\n

Instead of travel, he seems to have taken water and depth as his inspiration, creating washes of sound, over which melodies and counter melodies of electric piano and guitar meander like tributaries.<\/p>\n

\"Robin
IF THE HAT FITS – Robin Guthrie, picture by Violette Guthrie<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It’s luxurious and calming, like listening to a gently moving stream, tracks sliding seamlessly in and out of your consciousness.<\/p>\n

There’s no real standout track among these 10 ambient instrumentals, but they’ve clearly been carefully compiled to create an overall mood.<\/p>\n

No words are required, Guthrie can convey more in a three-note arpeggio than most artists achieve in a fistful of albums.<\/p>\n

Inevitably there are moments, which recall the Cocteaus and it’s intriguing to imagine what Elizabeth Fraser<\/strong>‘s vocal might have added to soundscapes like\u00a0Oceanaire<\/em><\/strong> and Questern<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

It’s sophisticated music that sounds deceptively simple, with a complete absence of ego or ostentation, songs ebb and flow like waves on a beach, rising and falling away before ever quite reaching a crescendo.<\/p>\n

More akin to classical music than indie-rock, Pearldiving<\/em> is another great addition to Guthrie’s considerable musical canon.<\/p>\n

A personal, peaceful record. it’s the perfect antidote for those moments when life feels like it’s getting too much, or you’ve had a truly lousy day at work.<\/p>\n

It’s surely no accident that one of the songs is called On The Trail Of Grace<\/em><\/strong>, as\u00a0Guthrie come pretty close to finding it here.<\/p>\n