Figurant - A Home In the Trees

This is a lovely release from Greek melancholic Figurant on Somehow Ecstatic. Limited to 200 copies, each with unique artwork. It's dreamy slow-core that reminds me very much of bands like Hood and Empress. All very minimal and pastoral, with occasional sparse electronic beats, and some wind instruments i'm loath to commit to naming, but i reckon i can fairly confidently say there's some accordion and harmonica on there in places. One track, 'Our Previous Achievements', has got a xylophone and he's recorded a bunch of vocal harmonies, and the whole cycle of tracks seems to centre around that one, but there's plenty to love here if you want to hear something achingly sad. There's a strong theme through the album about loving and protecting trees, with songs such as 'Dead Tree', 'Another Tree That Fell' and 'Burned Trees Aren't Listed', and all the covers are unsurprisingly recycled ("from old papers, used straws and banana peels!"). That said, though, I reckon even if you don't like trees at all and happen to be some kind of nature-hating hoarder of melancholia there's still a good chance you'd be into this. It's very pretty. With him being Greek, some of the lyrics can seem a bit clumsy, too, and if you don't find that kind of thing as charming as I do then I suppose that could be offputting.