Texas-based Aural Canyon specializes in releasing cassettes deeply imbued with a sense of place. Johnny Bell’s Field Trips was one such album, a collection of songs that paid homage to several Southwestern U.S. locations. North Texas Electric by Justin Sweatt was another record that fits this mold.
River Transmission by TwoPine is one of the latest releases from Aural Canyon that once again uses sound to tell the story of a specific place. Tayler File wrote and recorded River Transmission in Evansville, Indiana.
The initial tracks were crafted along the Ohio River’s banks with an acoustic guitar, an OP1, and a portable 8-bit synth. Tayler later refined the tracks in a bedroom studio but included numerous field recordings from early morning riverside walks.
“As the record took shape, the river influenced the music, and the music reflected the river,” the liner notes read. That’s a poetic description, but it doesn’t hit home until you listen to River Transmission and fully absorb the sounds.
Comprised of nine tracks, River Transmission is a record that captures the essence of a serene early morning walk and the Ohio River’s banks like you are staring down at the water and gazing at your reflection.
Evansville, Indiana, is a city that probably not even many Americans are familiar with. The third-most populous city in the Hoosier State is on an oxbow in the Ohio River and is often called “River City” or “Crescent Valley.”
The area around Evansville has been inhabited by various Indigenous cultures for millennia, dating back at least 10,000 years. On River Transmission, TwoPine gathers all this history and translates it into musical form.
Was TwoPine thinking of the river’s ancient nature when taking his morning walks and creating the record? Perhaps. Even if he wasn’t, the ancestral echoes of the River City likely seeped into his consciousness.
Maybe that’s why I felt a sense of timelessness when listening to River Transmission. Yes, the album is imbued with the sounds of the Ohio River, but if you’re not familiar with that location, then as you listen, the mood tends more toward any river and any riverbank. It’s a universal thing.
Musically, River Transmission fits perfectly within the Aural Canyon discography. The use of field recordings never feels forced; they blend seamlessly with TwoPine’s synthesizer and acoustic guitar, creating a calm, reflective mood that melds the tracks together like one long, continuous song.
The main thematic element – obviously – is water. No matter where TwoPine takes us, we always return to the sound of lapping water.
One of the more brilliant uses of field recordings can be found in “The Bottom & Resurface,” one of the most extended tracks. In this track, birdsong is looped and (from what I could tell) manipulated to become another of the song’s melodies.
Fans of experimental ambient music will love River Transmission. TwoPine has created something special here, but we’ve come to expect special whenever we check in on Aural Canyon. Listen to this one in a quiet place, preferably with headphones, and let the peaceful mood overtake you.
Check out River Transmission by TwoPine on Bandcamp here.
Aural Canyon: Bandcamp | Instagram | Mixcloud
TwoPine: Bandcamp | Instagram | Official Website
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