Atmospherical and Ambiant Soundscape that will Guide Your Ears
If you’re looking for mythical, airy, and infectious melodies and soundscapes look no further than 1st Base Runner’s newest EP ‘Ellis’ released December 10th of 2021. Hailing from Austin, Texas Tim Husman brings all the stops to create an atmospheric and ambient sound that sucks you as the listener into his world of unique and personal sounds. A long-time friend and co-writer Bryan Ellis worked alongside Husman to bring to life every song. Each track has a distinct feel that blends effortlessly between each other creating an undisturbed world of sounds you can lose yourself in.
The first track “Near Me” has a driving backbeat of the fuzzed-out kick drum, snare, and high hat. This lays the foundation for bright synth chords that layer on top which introduces you to the soundscape this EP will evolve around. Husman’s airy tone adds the final piece to this psychedelic feel and repeats the same lines throughout the song. Combined with intermediate guitar riffs we get swept away by the sound and subtle melodies that catch and reel the listener in. The lyrics state a question to some other person asking if they “will come near me”, “would you call”, and “would you come for me”. It feels desperate in the speaker’s attempt to find something that was once there, only now existing in memory.
“Flux” the second track continues this search, however now personifying this personage as someone who was once there, and “is still out there” while “I’m still right here”. The speaker keeps “Forgetting the lives we’ve lived”. Reminiscing on memories with a possible loved one or old friend that is no longer there. To support this development we have a different, and a clearer drum beat that entered in after a drone note starts the track. Above this foundation is a similar layer of chords as the last track, however, each note is more accented and emphasized giving more of a structure between each note and chord. If we were lost in the fog in the last track it feels as if we have just barely reached the edge and can start to see just a bit clearer. Once again the lyrics we have are repeated through the track as if stuck trying to come to terms with whatever has happened, and with whoever they have lost.
As we move into the next track we get a shift to instrumentation contrasting the first two tracks. There are fuzzed-out chords being played every eighth note that drive this song along with a more subtle drum line only utilizing a kick drum and some synth sounds. Above the lyrics, there is a clear sound almost ‘buzzing’ a clear melodic line. Throughout the song, additional layers come in and out often cascading and creating a colder feel and a sense of sliding from one part to the next. This supports the lyrical line which is now a complete story rather than a few repeating lines as if finally able to put thoughts together after being clouded and confused for so long. The speaker reminisces how they fell in love from across the way, it is ambiguous if it was unrequited or not however the overall feel is of loss and nostalgia.
We come into the fourth track “XYX”, which is the clearest, and also the most upbeat feel of the album. The lyrics start almost immediately over a basic techno beat and an ambient background noise. We have a catchy guitar riff between lyrical lines that mimics the melody and is one of the clearest guitar sounds we’ve heard changing the feel drastically from the first two tracks. Through it all, we have lyrics regretting not being able to tell the lover what they meant to them. We get a sense that it was either a fleeting relationship or perhaps one that occurred in the mind of the speaker as they see them day to day. This would make the lyrics in “Flux” make sense, specifically “I keep forgetting all the lives we’ve lived” as if they have imagined different scenarios where they were able to “find the words to tell you how I feel for you” as they now say in this track. The upbeat and major melody and rhythm of the song contrast the sadness we can sense as regrets and nostalgia come to the forefront of these lyrics. However, the speaker can possibly look back with a sense of happiness knowing that they had the chance to know whoever this unknown love interest is. “If only I could find the nerve to tell you what you mean to me” is the most prominent lyric and sums up what all these songs have been portraying, loss for something, that could have been lost opportunities, and a desperate attempt to shape destiny and the life we live.
The fifth and final track, “Man Overboard” is perhaps the most unique song in this entire album. Its electro-pop feel, deep synth background, eclectic drums, and ambient sounds set this contrasting scene while keeping its atmospheric sound as if we are looking at a new landscape in the same space, just a different time. The speaker speaks for a time when things were in control. Turning away from the mountain of obstacles of life and finding a time when they were felt in control or miles above any worry. This techno landscape is a perfect concussion on this album as the sound has evolved and shaped into something new, while still holding close to the instrumental and melodic ties from the very beginning. This imitates the flow of life as it shifts and flows around us uncontrollably and inevitably.
Time Husmann along with Bryan Ellis has brought to life this album battling with relatable themes of destiny, emotions, a sense of loss, and finding oneself which. These tracks highlight 1st Base Runner’s unique sound as a collage of electronic, indie, alternative, and shoegaze which paint a musical soundscape that reels you in from the first beat to the last.
Bandcamp Link: https://1stbaserunner.bandcamp.com/album/ellis
Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/album/6q1zb2wAZ20y6NFG4F5oV8?si=xSQ3QqTPTtulii3k4G4y6Q
Let me know what you think about my thoughts on this album by leaving a comment or sending a message to [email protected]. Also, tune into the show Under the Stage every Thursday from 5-6 pm to hear other up-and-coming artists like this!
