Rob Byrd- Bells of Tomorrow

ARTIST: Rob Byrd
ALBUM: Bells of Tomorrow
LABEL: Rootsucker Records
REVIEWER: Matthew J.
DATE: 11-3-07

Guitarist and composer Rob Byrd's material runs the gamut from gentle sleepy ambience to darker, more industrial-themed soundscapes. Though Byrd primarily records using the electric guitar, his use of studio processing and effects allow him to wring a surprising range of sound from the instrument. The result is less like space rock or psychedelia than the deeper, lonelier atmosphere of artists like Robert Rich and Tor Lundvall, with "Lightcircle" being the only selection that really draws attention to conventional guitar timbres. "Slate Tones" and "Of the Wire and the Brick" in particular create a mood of loneliness softened by tranquillity, while "Rust Encroaching" is deeper, darker, more hollow. "Holy Name" is more layered and textural, with multiple drones washing over a faintly unsettling undercurrent of bass rumble, while "Still the Sky" moves into industrial soundscape territory with its wetly clanking echoes. Meditative without moving into the more saccharine territory of New Age music, Byrd's work has an underlying darkness to it that should appeal especially to fans of Vidna Obmana's guitar-based project, Fear Falls Burning.

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