Paul Cogley “Deep Blue Sky”
Deep Blue Sky is such a fantastic album that it feels like a loss for anyone who didn't hear it already. Paul Cogley orchestrates a captivating and expansive experience through 12 songs, taking you on a deeply awakening journey above the sky with your visions and imagination broadened. “Mr. Spaceman" produces an impressive 3-D experience as if the track itself is projected across a sonic theater. The sounds surround you, swirling from side to side, placing you in an interactive sonic space where they have become palpable.
In “Mr. Spaceman," Cogley's voice is as vulnerable as it is sensitive. It softens the edges of those highly captivating, cleverly orchestrated, reoccurring riffs that draw you back and forth in good chemistry. His music has you widening your eyes as well as grinning and connecting. It's worth pointing out that the way Cogley plays with elements and themes is simply genius. His ability to make repetition fascinating also seems effortless.
“What If It Were You" dives into a deep, calming soundscape that feels like a painting of the night sky. A driven rock rhythm stirs the calm water. The track begins with a guitar in solitude, spreading out in distortion. In “Lament," a strand of light and night weaved into the beautifully tender storytelling. Here, the strings and woodwinds become the fleeing giggles that echo in the background. Hearing that soulful but light expression is simply precious. Into “The Flimflam," the echos became this classic, booming pulsation that brings a dizzy feeling into your eardrum. There are also fleeing sounds in there, but the mesmerizing short lick has your attention, going into a western, alternative rock and blue palette. What's even more interesting is how “Everything Changes" continues the shivering echo from the last track but tunes into an introspective gaze.
“Pebble" delivers a change of pace in the album that lifts the air with brighter colors and lighter feels. “Epitaph," on the other hand, concludes the album with meditative storytelling that builds the space from the lingering sound after hitting the strings.
