Ocean Floor has shared his new album, Vernalis, via Seattle, Washington’s Eiderdown Records. 

Vernalis is the Irish multi-instrumentalist’s eighth release, and was recorded in March 2018 in Bristol, UK. It’s the product of a single recording session in Jute Box Studio using their Hammond organ and vintage Korg MS-10 synthesizer. 

The album consists of three elemental improvisations, where simple Hammond chord progressions are elaborated on by swirls of synthesized sound. Each improvisation is based around a simple melodic theme that disappears into waves of sound and re-emerges periodically. This sense of departure and return aims to mirror natural cycles, such as the emergence of spring from winter. 

Ocean Floor is the solo project of Aonghus Reidy. Since his debut release, Jupiter, in 2014, he has released several albums of slowly evolving harmonies and soundscapes, with elements of ambient, minimalist, and experimental styles. Relocating to Bristol in 2011, his music took a new direction after finding an antique harmonium in a local salvage shop. Its creaking bellows inspired a series of compositions that meld 19th-century music technology with dense clouds of electronic sound and reverb.

Tracklisting

01. Hibernal

02. Prevernal

03. Vernalis

Vernalis LP is available now via Eiderdown Records, with opener “Hibernal” streaming over at Bandcamp.