Music For Writers is guitarist/songwriter Steve Gunn’s first solo album in four years, but it’s not the follow-up to 2021’s well-received Other You. Instead, it continues walking the path of his pair of records with pianist David Moore: peaceful, empathic, atmospheric. Working with acoustic guitar, synths, and no lyrics or vocals, Gunn paints aural pictures to wander through. He wants to galvanize contemplation here, evoking the natural scenes, widescreen skies, and varied artworks that inspired him to write these pieces. The music ranges from the ambient clouds floating through “Safety” and the minimalist pastoralism of “Snow/Water” to the new age folk of “Park Entrance” and the neo-classical ramble of “Dog.” Closer “Pedvale Sunrise” sums up the aim of the album, with busy guitar picking and soothing synthesizers spurring thought and reflection. It sounds like new age music, and maybe it is. But the general musicality and genuine feeling behind it meet Gunn’s high standards for his own music, and if they animate listeners to explore their own imagination, so much the better.
