At the beginning of the year, I decided to embark on a new record project. I’d give myself three months to create twelve tunes with a lo-fi theme. Throughout the first quarter of the year, my goals shifted. I opted to refocus on a more cinematic tone to appeal to an Artlist application that, regrettably, failed.
It’s unfortunate that the effort ended in loss, but it doesn’t diminish the trip or the task itself. Mixing lo-fi rhythms with cinematic melodies seemed like a fresh perspective on the genre, allowing me to re-discover my downtempo/electronica origins in a new and exciting way. My first album, ‘Pomp Yin – World Celebration,’ was released 9 years ago and was one of the most enjoyable creative projects I’ve ever worked on, and I’ve always wondered if I’d have time to produce another with all the responsibilites of life that get in the way.
Well, nearly over a decade later I have and although it missed the mark for Artlist, I’m still happy with the project for the amount of time I had to work on it. You can find more about the process in the video below:
The album itself is a mixture of genres, drawing on the rich tapestries of ambient, electronica, downtempo, jazz, lounge and world music. All twelve tracks were named by my wife Martina, who, together with my best man Jonny Knowles, have been my main supporters and motivators to create more music.
With so many excellent musicians and producers online and around the globe, it may be tough not to compare your work to others. When it comes to music, I usually feel like I achieve a level of quality that is above average but just below professional; perhaps this is due to impostor syndrome, but it doesn’t deter me. If anything, seeing people pursue artistic endeavours and push themselves to learn more inspires me to continue honing my talents in whichever area I focus on.
If you would like to listen to the full album, you can do that by clicking on the video below. The full album with individual tracks will follow shortly on Spotify and all the other big streaming platforms.
Thanks for listening
