In Search Of Media

Released: January 12, 2024

Genre: Alternative / Experimental

From: The Netherlands

Label: 10k

Why you should listen: Jespfur is a Dutch musician I’ve been familiar with for a little while now, having performed at the last Sonic Verse gig, I think. I’ve always been enamoured by ability to merge emotive and moving vocals with an heavy, cutting-edge beatmaking and production. Pedestrians Of Bright Silence is a gorgeous, stunning new album and already I see myself playing on repeat for the forseeable future. The 13-track album is filled with lush, gorgeous and atmospheric production, coupled by Jespfur’s emotive and powerful vocals and the plethora of other eclectic sounds. It opens with the short but poignant ambient piece “Fellow pedestrians”, setting the tone for the kind of emotion we’re getting throughout. The shoegazey and warm feel of “nil” is intimate, as Jespfur sings delicately over the vibrant guitar-led grooves and subtle horn instrumentation that embraces the track emotively. The crashing drums, wild horns and percussion in the middle of “Straim (hide n seek)” is explosive and incredibly groovy, while the outro to the track, with the incredible saxophone and guitar leads is mesmeric. “Da Da da” focuses on the infectious guitar-driven melody, with Jespfur’s vocals being muffled behind the seductive instrumentation, though his vocals are sexy throughout this track as well. “strapped” is gorgeous, with its rumbling guitars, broken-beat rhythms and saxophone parts, all exploding in different sections of the track, like a collage of sounds married together by Jespfur’s genius compositions. The broken-beat woozy guitar and horn-led “Luuped” feel like an extension of the previous track, while “ccccccc” has Jespfur channelling his inner Sampha with some absolutely beautiful vocals, while the beat interlude on “Ear Cramp” is incredible too. The bass-led instrumental groove of “Sweet (altdai)” is met with emotive guitar leads, gorgeous synths and other percussion that give this such an infectious, pure energy. “Pointwood unmuted” has rhythmic drumming and muffled vocals from Jespfur, who reflects on his own state of mind, with observational, introspective lyrics. The heavy drumming and swaying guitars on “The flicker” are hypnotic, while the ethereal and emotive stunner of “silent Mascotte” is another highlight on the album for me, while the uplifting and shoegazy closer “wrong wright” is another beautiful moment, ending this body of work on such a high. Jespfur’s Pedestrians Of Bright Silence is a stunning and beautiful body of work, with an aura and delicacy it that feels vulnerable yet so inviting.

The album: