January 7, 2013

Vinyl Williams – ‘Lemniscate’

Vinyl Williams uses “sonic matrices” to transform mind and body

7 / 10 LA musician Vinyl Williams wants to lift your spirits. Debut album ‘Lemniscate’ uses “sonic matrices” (the 22-year-old’s words) to transform mind and body. It’s the musical equivalent of a post-yoga spirulina shake, or a pill. But does it work? A myriad of influences from Plato to Mormonism and, one imagines, John Williams – composer of top film scores including Jaws, Star Wars and Indiana Jones – create a busy collage. At first listen, you’ll think you’ve accidentally played three songs at once. But the kaleidoscopic, dreamy psych-funk of songs like ‘Tokyo -> Sumatra’ and ‘Higher Worlds’ are strong, and the overall effect is gentle and vast.
Lucy Jones