Galapaghost - I Never Arrived (Self-Released)

Galapaghost is the solo project of Austin singer/songwriter Casey Chandler, a musician who has toured with the like of John Grant. His newest album, I Never Arrived, is truly a global effort, having been written in Brussels and recorded in Italy. Consequently, the album has a touch of each location—the uncertainty and melancholy of the former drenched in the lyrics, and the heartfelt, breezy nature of the latter reflected in the production itself.

There’s a beautiful wistful, ephemeral quality to songs like the dreamy opener “Mazes in the Sky” or the finger-picking and slide guitar of “Vitamin D.” A strong shoegaze influence affects these recordings indirectly, but comes to the fore most obviously on lushly produced songs such as “Science of Lover” and the title track which sounds like Leonard Cohen discovering a dance club for the first time.

Because of the slower nature of much of the record, it can be a work that takes some getting acquainted with, yet it offers up more and more hidden gems with each repeated listen. I Never Arrived is a misleading title, because if anything it finds Chandler truly coming into his own on what is undoubtedly his finest and most mature work yet.