A Peaceful Escape: Sunamachi Sound System’s SI

Intricate music isn’t always all that calming, but Sunamachi Sound System’s SI functions as an album that’s fun to listen closely too but also one equally nice to play while staring out a Starbuck’s window while turning thoughts over (guess where I am!). The project constructs songs from a pretty sparse set of sounds — simple drum machine beats, a smattering of bleepy notes — but finds all sorts of ways to to arrange them in a way to turn these into little landscapes wowing both micro and macro. “Snowbird” bobs along, new melodies sneaking in and transforming what begins as a pleasant beat into something with a lot of attention to detail that hits on a lot of emotion. “God’s Patience” goes in a more wobbly direction, teasing skippy percussion and more warped passages along the way. Even short creations like “Natsu” hide nice shifts around every corner. And you can approach it from a place where you want to pick up the little things…or just rest in the glow every element brings out. Get it here, or listen below.