Album Review/ Alt Folk : Agneu’s ‘Air & Twigs’
Agneu is a singer-songwriter and alt folk artist. His latest release is ‘Air & Twigs’, where he explores spatial dimensions with fragile moments of music and melody. There’s a lot of minimalistic accents that detail the soundscape intricately. The album release is a collection of seven songs that explore the themes with soulful ambiences, thoughtful songwriting, contemplative vocals and musical fluidity.
There are a lot of harmonies that invoke a sense of presence and warmth within the tracks. There’s also a lot of spiritual art and awareness that is imprinted into his work. In many ways, his music is an extension of the human journey that he is on. Of connection, freedom and creativity. A beautiful expression of art.
‘How bright’s the moon’ opens the collection. It is a buoyant and light flow of music that seems to have an aura around it. A halo of melodies that swirl around the soundscape. Mellow electric guitar chords come in, neoclassicals weave in for a bit. Just like that, the artist loops in such a beautiful ambience to bring the theme alive.
It’s a full song. Full of melodic sensibilities. So undeniable and so distinct. Across the album, we see a few more like this. Tracks like ‘Sundays are for Dreaming’, ‘False Flag’ and ‘Calling Out Your Name’ have these fluid instrumental meadows where one feeds the other. There’s a lot of richness in these soundscapes because they draw you into so many different types of energies. Hailing for New Zealand, the artist really connects his music to earthy and natural styles of music. And of course, the water culture as well.
In some of these tracks, we see a little bit of that fuzzy surf rock influence. It is not absolute, but a subtle dimension that he brings to the rest of the soundscape. That sun washed, beachy and airy sound that takes you to an expansive place. ‘Air and Twigs’ is one such track. Where the artist marries the youthful indie rock with grounding sounds. It has a lot of texture and intense looping chords. So powerful because the artist’s vocals leans in at the same frequency, same rhythm and same sentiment. So you get a similar vibe, but different forms of it, all marrying into each other. It takes you to a very modern David Bowie vibe.
Softer tracks like ‘Afterlife’, and ‘The reasons birds fly’ are rustic folk straight out of the heart. There’s no filter. Just raw and free folk expression. Mellow acoustics, electric guitar tones, simple vocals raised by harmony echoes. It maintains that fuzzy quality and earthy mystique. There is something deep in the song, that it connects you to a root inside you. These tracks are reminiscent of artists like Nick Drake, Sparklehouse, and Elliott Smith. Dreamy, wishful and layered in ways that carry you to a meaningful place. Listen Now!
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The album is available for streaming on popular sites like Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and Amazon Music!
You can listen to ‘Air & Twigs’ by Agneu
