You guys, I’m not … I’m not kidding. I like Channelers, I really do.
Inner Islands label-head Sean Conrad’s go-to moniker for all things beatific,
Channelers always unfolds in new and exciting ways. Essex
did our heads in with synthy aqua swells, and Arden
Tapes, while not actually being tapes, turned inward with acoustic
guitar passages. But Space Makes Clearing
might be the one – it might actually be the one to break your brain and
send it on a permanent astral trip. If not that, then it’s at least going to be
the morphine in your drip, the feel-good pulse every time you hit that button
from your hospital bed. Or at least that’s how it seems – you don’t have to be
incapacitated or injured or something to convalesce. Conrad knows that – that’s
why his tunes are the balm for what ails you, never mind how serious your
ailment or incapacitated you may feel. I write this at 9:17pm on November 8,
2016, and I’ve got a deep dissatisfaction in my soul. By the time you read
this, you’ll be a step ahead of me in understanding the direction our world,
but right now I’ve got the uncertainty blues, and Space Makes Clearing is the one thing that’s propping my spirits in
an upright direction at the moment. Guitars, synthesizers – other instruments?
Probably – combine for maximum peace-ing out, and arpeggios shimmer like stars
and souls and trickle like rivulets and life force into a vast expanse. I mean,
he’s got a track called “Praise for Life in All Its Forms,” for crying out
loud! “Your Spell Is on the Wind” might as well be called that, or the utterly
fantastic “Clear Guidance Golden Chords” – check that, “Clear Guidance” is
absolutely perfectly titled in its harp-y, angelic goodness. But still, take
Sean Conrad’s entire body of work – Channelers, Ashan, Orra, Inner Islands,
whatever else – and apply “Praise for Life in All Its Forms” to it. Why don’t
the vast majority of other people follow this particular track? It’s a
travesty, I tell you. I’m seriously considering making a loop of Space Makes Clearing and pumping it
through my speakers all day, at various volumes depending on how closely I want
to pay attention. I have a feeling it will be very close, most of the time.
Backing off the trepidation now – I’ve got good vibes all day long with this
thing. Who cares who wins this election at the moment (but really, you should
absolutely care, I’m just editorializing), there’s so much to look forward to.
Channelers just happens to be the perfect musical accompaniment for
self-actualization.
--Ryan Masteller
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