Solstice (Live) - Kieran Mahon

Daedal drones anchor the latest ambient work by St. Leonard’s premier manipulator of loops and echoes. Kieran Mahon’s half hour single-track deep listen brings to mind wide-ranging works from the history of ambient music; from the groundbreaking compositions of Yoshio Ojima through to the work of ‘Lux’-era Brian Eno, Jon Hopkins and contemporaries such as The Leaf Library and Have A Nice Life. ‘Solstice (Live)’ is representative of the style he has developed over a varied career that has seen an impressive output of work spanning multiple electronic sub-genres. Kieran described the record as being “about standing still, whilst still being in motion.” As with a lot of his music, he guides the listener towards the spaces between the notes and rhythm using simple patterns and heavy repetition. This is a piece of work that draws you in and commands your focus. In discussing the album, Kieran stated that his goal with this record was to allow the listener time. “Not to ‘chill out’, but to feel some kind of clarity. And then move on." ‘Solstice (Live)’ does just that.