Lake Fire

On his first solo work since 2021s Clara, Scott Morgan delivers an album that might be peak Loscil. Where Clara and the Lawrence English collaborations Colours of Air and Chroma brought brilliant clarity to his music, Lake Fire is an often stunning reminder of Morgans way with shadows and fog -- or in this case, smoke. Inspired by a road trip into the Vancouver mountains near areas engulfed by wildfire, the album calls to mind the misty depths of works such as Sketches from New Brighton, particularly on "Arrhythmia," which begins Lake Fire with seismic pulses and dense textures that will sound instantly welcoming to longtime Loscil fans. Like Clara, which brought new life to a piece composed for a string orchestra, Lake Fire began as a suite of electro-acoustic compositions that Morgan reworked radically. "Ash Clouds," an expansive exercise in tension that featuring James Meager on double bass, was the only piece to survive the creative transformation unscathed, but traces of the albums origins can be heard in "Bell Flame" as its layers of counterpoint build into a ghostly orchestra. Like new growth after a forest fire, Lake Fires cycle of destruction and rebirth takes on distinct but equally compelling forms, from the soothing, breath-like flow of "Doux"s swelling echoes to the somber anticipation of "Silos" shivering tones and fathomless bass. As always, Loscils pieces arent just ambiences. Theyre detailed environments, like the gusts of shimmering synths on "Flutter" that evoke ashes carried on the wind, or the piano melody that rises from "Candling"s swirling mist like trees emerging from smoke. Morgan unites the albums strengths on its outstanding title track, telling a story of encroaching devastation and its aftermath without ever going into the red. Finely nuanced shades of gray are all he needs on Lake Fire, a formidable, beautiful return to Loscils fundamentals. ~ Heather Phares