Draft:A Measure of Shape and Sounds
 | Review waiting, please be patient.
This may take 6 weeks or more, since drafts are reviewed in no specific order. There are 1,022 pending submissions waiting for review.
Where to get help
How to improve a draft
You can also browse Wikipedia:Featured articles and Wikipedia:Good articles to find examples of Wikipedia's best writing on topics similar to your proposed article. Improving your odds of a speedy review To improve your odds of a faster review, tag your draft with relevant WikiProject tags using the button below. This will let reviewers know a new draft has been submitted in their area of interest. For instance, if you wrote about a female astronomer, you would want to add the Biography, Astronomy, and Women scientists tags. Editor resources
Reviewer tools
|
| A Measure of Shape and Sounds | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 20, 2024 | |||
| Recorded | 2023 | |||
| Studio | Echo Mountain | |||
| Length | 43:08 | |||
| Label | Hopeful Tragedy | |||
| Producer | Ben Lemelin | |||
| Alex Henry Foster chronology | ||||
| ||||
A Measure of Shape and Sounds is a studio album by Alex Henry Foster, released on September 20, 2024, through the independent label Hopeful Tragedy Records. It is Foster's second release of the year. Fully instrumental, the album has been composed alongside Ben Lemelin, fellow bandmates in Your Favorite Enemies and member of The Long Shadows.
Containing 10 tracks, it is the second part of a bigger project titled Voyage à la Mer, the first part being Kimiyo, released earlier in 2024[1].
The album debuted in position 41 in the Billboard Canadian Album charts[2] and also made it into Billboard's New Age Albums charts[3].
Background
[edit]In February 2023, Alex Henry Foster underwent cardiac surgery, postponing his musical projects and tours with his band The Long Shadows.[4] During this recovery period, he envisioned working on a project he had started in Japan in 2010. Unable to talk, much less sing, he decided to record this album. Different from the music he usually writes, this instrumental album was a decision made in full consciousness[5], and not under duress. It resulted in a sound journey in which quiet tones and minimalism determine the mood[6].
Purposely recorded live to capture as direct a flow as possible, the songs embody that exact moment, carrying their human disposition to abandon oneself to the motion and become one with it[7]. An intimate journey of its own, it is made of several layers of guitar loops, reverberations, resonances, and oscillations juxtaposed together to create a sonic multi-directional contemplative maelstrom[8].
While being highly personal to the artist, the album leaves room to interpretation to the listener, turning it into an individual voyage for everyone[9]. The album has been referred to as a self-therapy and self-discovery that transfers to the listeners through an ambient post-rock soundtrack[10]. Less like instrumental moments, the songs are like pieces of humanity that can be traced back, in which nothing has to be said, but everything has to be touched[11]. Inviting the listeners in, the album has become a universe of its own, where laws of gravity do not apply[12].
Singles
[edit]Alchemical Connection
[edit]Alchemical Connection is the first single from the album and was used to announce the upcoming album. Along with a music video, the track was described "as if beauty’s immortal representative had suddenly manifested in our midst"[13].
Sorrowful Bouquet
[edit]Sorrowful Bouquet is the second single from the album, which gave the impressions, at times, that we retrace the route of the capsule that escaped from the ship 2001: A Space Odyssey (the Kubrick’s film), as the choral effects carry the movement. A fascinating outfit[14].
Cinematic Insight
[edit]Third single of the album, Cinematic Insight is a song that has a very strong emotional power, it almost seems to dig inside the listener, it seems to invite him to reflect, to let go of errors, mistakes, defeats. The song seems to indicate a path: forward, beyond the darkness, towards the light[15].
A Mind's Tapestry
[edit]The last single of the album, the fourth out of ten tracks, is A Mind's Tapestry, also Alex's favorite[16] song off A Measure of Shape and Sounds. Accompanied by a visually captivating video centered around water, a symbolic reflection of the peace we all seek, the song evokes a sense of weightlessness, a peaceful defiance in the face of existential impermanence. It’s a deeply contemplative work that encourages listeners to embrace their being with acceptance and calm[17]. It is a song that it is hard not being moved by[18].
Track Listing
[edit]All tracks are written by Alex Henry Foster and co-written, recorded, and produced by Ben Lemelin.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Thoughtful Descent" | 2:45 |
| 2. | "Mechanical Revision" | 3:41 |
| 3. | "A Mind’s Tapestry" | 5:08 |
| 4. | "Cinematic Insight" | 4:57 |
| 5. | "Self-Portrait" | 2:29 |
| 6. | "Sorrowful Bouquet" | 6:40 |
| 7. | "Manic View" | 2:33 |
| 8. | "A Gesture, A Present" | 7:49 |
| 9. | "Alchemical Connection" | 2:34 |
| 10. | "Reflective Ascent" | 4:30 |
References
[edit]- ^ "New And Upcoming Canadian Releases: Crash Adams, Sum 41, Good Kid & More | Billboard Canada". ca.billboard.com. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "Devon Cole Debuts Radio Hit 'I Got You' on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 | Billboard Canada". ca.billboard.com. Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ devops (2013-01-02). "New Age Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ "Alex Henry Foster Donates to Support Morocco". www.jesusfreakhideout.com. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ flohfish (2024-09-23). "Alex Henry Foster - A Measure Of Shape And Sounds - BetreutesProggen.de". Betreutes Proggen (in German). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ flohfish (2024-09-23). "Alex Henry Foster - A Measure Of Shape And Sounds - BetreutesProggen.de". Betreutes Proggen (in German). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ P, Nessa (2024-07-11). "Alex Henry Foster Teases 'A Measure Of Shape And Sounds' with "Alchemical Connection" Single". V13.net. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
- ^ "Alex Henry Foster Announces New LP, Shares Single 'Alchemical Connection'". www.jesusfreakhideout.com. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
- ^ flohfish (2024-09-23). "Alex Henry Foster - A Measure Of Shape And Sounds - BetreutesProggen.de". Betreutes Proggen (in German). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ "Babyblaue Prog-Reviews: Alex Henry Foster: A Measure of Shape and Sounds: Review". www.babyblaue-seiten.de. Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ Cormier, Sylvain (2024-09-20). "«A Measure of Shape and Sounds», Alex Henry Foster". Le Devoir (in French). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ AMoell. "Alex Henry Foster: Ein orchestraler Sog der Selbstreflexion". AM:plified • Das Magazin für starke Musik (in German). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ Cantrell, Dave (2024-07-09). "STEREO EMBERS SINGLE PREMIERE & EXCLUSIVE LP ANNOUNCEMENT - "Alchemical Connection" from Ambient Psych Composer Alex Henry Foster's New Album 'A Measure of Shape and Sounds'". Stereo Embers Magazine. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
- ^ Cormier, Sylvain (2024-09-20). "«A Measure of Shape and Sounds», Alex Henry Foster". Le Devoir (in French). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ Redazione (2024-09-20). "ALEX HENRY FOSTER | singolo". DISTOPIC.IT (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ Papadatos, Markos (2024-08-13). "Alex Henry Foster talks about his new album, and show at Racket NYC". Digital Journal. Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ Adigun, Olaitan (2024-10-08). "Alex Henry Foster's New Album: A Sonic Journey of Reflection and Release". BLN ENTERTAINMENT TV. Retrieved 2024-11-03.
- ^ Redazione (2024-10-07). "ALEX HENRY FOSTER | singolo". DISTOPIC.IT (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-11-03.