Spectreview: Ends – Spiral

Released: February 26, 2021

Electronic
(Ambient)

-GREY-

For a guide to the review color rating system, click here.

It’s been over two years since I started writing about music, and y’all, I have learned a lot. I acquired a ton of new words, I’ve exposed myself to countless awesome acts from across the world, and I’ve found myself more knowledgable about the inner workings of the music industry. Most of all I’ve come to believe that pursuing your passions, barring a tolerable cost, is a virtuous endeavor that’s worth the time and effort.

That’s why it’s fitting to come back to one of the first artists I ever covered: Gabe Postle, an independent artist from Bellingham that crafts electronic music as Ends. His new record, released on a Portland tape label, finds Postle in a more ruminative headspace as he conjures  galactic ambience. Compared to Leave’s mechanical toe-tapping rhythms, Spiral ebbs and flows like ether, in a similar fashion to how 65daysofstatic’s soundscapes color the procedural planets of No Man’s Sky.

While its general mood is gently meditative, the EP gives additional evidence that Postle has a real knack for curating textures. “Computer Mind” glides on twinkles and hums until its low-picked strings and respiring bleeps bring the piece closer to earth. “Strucutre” [sic] pits sporadic guitar, rising arpeggios and crunchy low-end against a constant synth bed, staying true to its title by providing change in stasis. “Calm,” on the other hand, might be the least placid track here thanks to its striking sawtooths that crest dissonantly overhead.

Boasting a strong start with an even stronger finish in the uplifting, mollifying “Tomorrow,” Spiral is melodious background music that still has the capacity to be engaging – the de facto definition of ambient.

Recommended for sitting in motion.