Jeff Pearce The Light Beyond

Jeff Pearce has made a name for himself with his own variety of "infinite guitar," heavily processed, reverberating echoes that seem to drift into eternity. In space music circles, particularly in the states, his 'To The Shores Of Heaven' was widely acclaimed. One might expect that his style of treated atmospheric guitar could only come across as a studio production. 'The Light Beyond' proves that is definitely not the case, as it is a live recording from the Star's End gathering in Philadelphia last June. This is as subtle and delicate as anything he has previously produced in the studio. Technically indexed into four tracks, it actually is almost a continuous hour of slow shifting, drifting and floating. 'Migration of Souls' features an unusual percussive sound.

Since I know Jeff prides himself on using only guitar, and since I wasn't at the concert, I can only guess as to how this sound were created. It is distinctive, and adds colour and depth to the recording, my favourite track of the four. A subtle change in tone signals the beginning of 'Across the Infinite Sea,' an appropriate title for the sound picture that develops. This fades almost to silence before the centerpiece of nearly 45 minutes, 'A Farther Shore,' full of shadings of brightness and shimmers. SMD listeners looking for a sequencer slugfest will be itching for something more to happen, but for ambient fans this should satisfy.