KRANKY. It’s a label that this unerring step with beautiful and complex ambient music, one which it’s been plying now for a quarter-century and more.
The Texan imprint has just unveiled its latest signing: and once more they’ve struck the proverbial gold.
Los Angeles-based Ana Roxanne comes into the fold on the back of one mini-LP for Stones Throw-related Leaving Records, last year’s enigmatically titled ~ ~ ~.
The new album, we’re told, germinated gradually over a period of five years; it’s entitled Because Of A Flower and says, Ana, is inspired by an interweaving of notions of gender identity, beauty, and cruelty.
Leaving all concepts aside, it’s on the emotional level that the music hits you. Simply out: it’s very beautiful. Ana has released lead track “Suite Pour L’invisible”, which we’ve embedded below; take a listen, be seduced.
It flourishes in a cleanly recorded guitar and interweaving bells. The guitar in particular brings to mind Labradford circa Fixed::Context: it’s a very simple Telecaster (?) motif, ringing, warm, gradually exploring. The pacing is perfect. And then Ana sings. And then you know you’re in the aural presence of something very special.
Ana describes her process as beginning with “a drone element and a mood,” then intuiting melody, syllables, and lyrics from that point; allowing the initial lush nugget of sound to guide the unfolding; channeling the song, guiding it to fulfilment.
Because Of A Flower will be released by Kranky on CD and LP on November 13th; Kranky are taking orders here; but behind me in the queue, if you would.
