Clem Leek - Holly Lane

Our review
Customer reviews
Press release
Soundclips

5...according to our Brian on Thu 28 Oct, 2010.

More post-ambient/drone/neo-classical loveliness from this guy. He stems from pastures in the South East of the UK and this is his first for Hibernate, the label with the cute bear as logo. The last time I heard this sort of music this well done was either on a Celer or Chihei Hatakayama release. All-enveloping, spiritual washes of drone create an almost choral, dream-like state, the opening piece underlaid with periodic chimes & gentle runs of glitch/crackle. Further adventuring reveals an attention to detail & depth that is sometimes absent in this particular genre. 'Greylings Manner' takes the mood sideways, being an eerie old piece with foundations as cold as marble, invoking druid-like spirits to float around my mind. I'm not going to reveal anymore as this is one sublime journey you should take, unentangled with words & opinions. All i'll say is that this particular release makes my mind gawp in wonder and often gives me a feeling of free-falling through endless clouds on a warm, balmy day when I shut my eyes. Mmmmmagic.

To play these clips you need to either update your browser (Norman Records recommends Google Chrome) or update your Flash plugin.

Clem Leek is a British musician and composer from Kent in Southern England. Since getting an MA in Music Composition under his belt, Clem has set about getting his wonderful Schedios label up and running and recording material of his own over the last year. 'Through The Annular' was his first EP, fusing some of his piano compositions with the dusty crackle of a 78rpm record. This latter EP was used to spearhead his own Schedios imprint. His second ep 'Snow Tales' was released as a free download on Experimedia. His third ep "pimlico" is a collaboration with Jannick Schou and came out on the Dead Pilot label, it had sold out within hours. Clem Leek's sound is influenced by a number of sources, from the minimalist composers Steve Reich and Philip Glass through to renowned musicians such as Keith Kennif, Max Richter, Matt Hales and many others.

With such a strong reputation for his ability to perform on the piano/keyboard whether live or in the studio, you'd perhaps expect Clem's first full album to be a carefully arranged feast of such compositions. However, 'Holly Lane' is instead a brooding and mysterious listen from start to finish, showing this talented young artists wide production pallette. Throughout this stunning 43 minute record, an overwhelming level of detail can be heard. It is awash with mysterious drone passages, echoes of ghostly instrument accents, glimpses of forgotten radio broadcasts, quiet, unobtrusive percussive sounds all underpinned by a subtle cavernous celestial chorus which really cements this all-round solid album debut.

Be the first to review this record. Best reviewer each month gets £10 off their next order!