Stepping away from the synths that have defined his previous work, Los Angeles dreamer Alex Twomey leans on piano and harpsichord for his latest outing as Mirror to Mirror. Whatever the instrumental means, though, he favours swaying back-and-forth exchanges that could often double as film scores. The plucky opening title track certainly fits that bill, even if it introduces a foreboding drag in the final minute.
Some tracks cultivate pure ambient atmosphere (“All People in My Hand’) and others centre on anchoring melodies (“Who’ Left’). But many simply blend both, as heard in the tinkling keys and background washes of “Wooden Head, Feet, and Seat’. This is fairly light stuff for the most part, frosted over with a feeling of swelling euphoria that can tip over into sighing melancholy. “The Store’ flirts with airy orchestral tones, while “Sleep Through School’ exudes computer-y bleeps before descending into ambient warmth.
His work has been likened to both neo-classical and pop, and here Twomey marries the two with unshowy finesse. If these tracks can drift towards the intangible at first, there’ a patient bubbling rise to the closing “Push Weight’s that holds our attention, whereas the two-minute “Burning Life’ proves more disquieting than most.
Doug Wallen
