Most people agree that knowing when a song is finished is essential. Few would agree with me that a song is never finished. Any recorded song is just a version of sonic events that happened on one particular day, a snapshot in time, the music of the moment. I’m not saying this to advance the cause of cover bands; I say this to advance the notion of creativity, remixing and re-imagining, asking the “what ifs?” and advocating the “why nots?”
It is an attitude that Roman Angelos shares as his new album Supermarkets, Underwater, is essentially an adventurous reworking of his previous release Music For Underwater Supermarkets; see, even the title is merely a remix.
Here, thanks in part, to producer Scott Solter the mood is changed. If the original was often buoyant (very useful if you find yourself in water), things become more subversive here. If the first record was about swimming through the aisle of a strange underwater supermarket, here we deep dive into more Atlantean depths. If before light still streamed through the surface waves to light our way, for this journey, we are more often travelling in shadow than following dappled streams that illuminate our way.
Roman Angelos has not only created an excellent record but has also reminded us that initial compositions can, if you are brave enough to allow them a life outside your control, be only the beginning of a beautiful sonic journey.
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The Aimless Aquanaut
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