If music associated with deserts usually comes at us in the form of spaghetti western soundtracks, Turaug blues albums, or Palm Desert rock bands, Moon and Aries instead gives us something new, not so much the music of the people found in such places as the power of the place itself.
The trans-Atlantic duo, here aided and abetted by the soulful guitars of Peter J. Mitchell and Hanna Marchand’s mellifluous saxophone, have always made music that is drifting and dreamlike, but “High Noon” seems even more immersive than usual. As gentle trip-hop beats carry us through the desert heat, saxophones drift alongside us, and shimmering cinematics create musical mirages before our senses; it is not the narrator who is the central figure here but the transformative power of the landscape itself.
It’s a romantic dreamscape, but one where enlightenment and truth are the rewards, perhaps both an idea of the stark beauty of such harsh and heavenly places, and a metaphor for anyone seeking to move beyond the mundane. (And it is worth remembering that many religions have their roots in such empty spaces, places where meditation and distance bring people closer to the source.)
“High Noon” is a glorious undertaking, a song with hidden depths. On the surface, it is a beautiful sonic trip. Dig deeper, and you find a celebration of the natural world in all its stark beauty. Beyond that, you may find the key to an understanding, one that makes you muse on the nature of humanity itself and where our spiritual evolution lies.
All that in under four minutes. Wow!
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