Bedford, Virginia based composer, pianist, producer, and your shepherd of soft experimental ambient, Micah Pick is set to release his third solo LP ‘Frameworks’ March 22nd. The album is the follow-up to 2023’s ‘Undecoded’ and 2020’s Audiobulb Records released LP ‘Brighter Than I Thought’, as well as a collaborative release with Benjamin Mauch and albums under the moniker American Mythology.
‘Frameworks’ is a pleasure for the ears from the start, although moods and paces shift and swirl throughout the entirety of it. 11 tracks in length, the album is filled with an overwhelming sense of safety and warmth, as though you’re being hugged by the person you love most. The light yet secure feeling of snugness bleeds through and as we begin ‘Frameworks’ with first track ‘Have This Mind’, you find yourself entering a new world, one in which the ceilings are covered in incandescent bulbs, heavy-duty and a bit fuzzy. A microtonal piano was used throughout the album, wrapped in granular processing, analog and modular synths, self-patched filters, and programmed beats. Pick’s process of combining natural sounds with ambient electronics has one feeling as though they’re walking amongst the ocean in a recently developed encapsulated technological device, and his ear for silence amongst the harmony is heavenly. There are certain tones used that strike an almost ancestral chord, whereas others amongst the LP feel fresh, newly found. Sonically it can be derivative (in the best sense of the word) of Aphex Twin, Nils Frahm, Allesandro Cortini, as if at a crossroads between Steve Hauschildt and Godspeed You! Black Emperor. ‘Glacial Requium’ keeps an eternal fire burning, both modestly and decadently, a must-listen. ‘A Moment’ captures your attention for only one minute in time but the combination of fuzz and drone, silence and water-like fluidity, make it memorable. ‘Broken Trellis’ is seemingly regretful, and at times the slightest bit unsettling, whereas ‘Earth Everlasting’ is all comfort and perhaps my favorite track off ‘Frameworks’. ‘Sea Coda’ is the contemplative last track of the LP. As though you’re wistfully thinking of what once was by the seaside, hearing the waves crash in front of you. Sea birds quietly singing in the last few seconds is an ideal way to end such a calming piece of art.
The Blue Ridge Mountain based artist has delivered an album great for intent conscious listening as well as flawless background for your more unconscious moments of the day, so put ‘Frameworks’ on right this instant!
Sarah Medeiros