Matt Lajoie – “Forest Sanctuary” / “Pan-Gaia”
The last few recordings from Matt Lajoie have all invoked an elemental spirit — the aqueous Everlasting Spring, the heat-born Praclete Tongue along with their companion pieces expanded the bounds of Matt’s improvisatorial spirit. He follows this week with an earthen component to the series, the aptly titled Red Resonant Earth. The album was equally drawn out of a fascination with a borrowed instrument, whittled from two 45-minute improvisations using his housemate’s Danelectro 59M 12-string, enthralled with the sound it produced. The first inroad to the album is the shrouded calm of “Forest Sanctuary,” a glittering track that pours down through the leaves like afternoon light. A verdant, mossy feeling surrounds the track, anchoring this to the world around with soil-stained tendrils.
As has been customary, Matt’s got a bit of a companion piece to the record, through this time it finds its way out not via his and Ash’s Flower Room but from Brad Rose’s Jewel Garden. The equally earthen Pan-Gaia, takes the long way around, expanding on some of the themes of RRE, and letting them soak in the shade just a bit longer. Today the label has shared the title track from that one and both are available to pre-order today with the Pan-Gaia cassette arriving at the end of the month and Red Resonant Earth on October 22nd. If you’ve been entranced by Matt’s playing in the past, then these should be a quick pickup.