Venerated enchantress of synthesized sound explores interstellar expanses through emotional lens to shape an intimate sort of cosmology.
Mostly known to progressive rock aficionados by her association with violinist David Cross, whose ensemble still perform pieces they co-penned, Sheila Maloney can’t boast of a lot in terms of solo career. A single track on “The Mellotron Album” doesn’t count, yet sharing disc space there with the likes of Patrick Moraz and Nick Magnus, if we’re talking about keyboard masters whose last names start with the same letter, should, so it was about time she stepped out. Still, what could be one small step for other artists turned out to be a giant leap for the lady not because of her debut’s deferment but thanks to the sonic access to firmament the tracks of “Beyond” focus on – with a cinematic scope ‘n’ sway Vangelis and Kitaro would approve of. And what could be defined as new age has never felt as tangible and muscular as a series of passages the London-based musician offers here, under a Darkfish moniker, across nine numbers that create quite an immersive experience.
It may have begun as the soundtrack to “Tour of the Universe” – an educational video Sheila was commissioned to give a melody to – with panoramic “Destination Forever” where ethereal voices underscore vibrant lines which Ms Maloney’s ivories weave, adding fresh motifs to her tapestry every few bars and embroidering aural images with riveting dynamic shifts, but she took it much further than mere background to on-screen visuals. Here’s why the mini-epics on display don’t seem to be sprawling into abstract, amorphous figures, although the twang lying in nocturnal depths of “Towards The Stars” won’t get revealed too soon, and the strands of “Endless Space” solidify into cathedral grandeur rather slowly. Yet while “Spiral Nebula” is haunted by a similar stained-glass beauty, there’s also a folk-informed thread to help the ballad unfold. However, “Voyager” gives even more momentum to the instrumental movements through to small details that keep enhancing the overall perspective, especially when shimmering notes chime like crystals among the spatial swirl, and “Planet Earth Is Blue” embraces human vulnerability via chamber piano – rippling so majestically as to open a different vista for “Leaving The Heliosphere” to seep in and thicken into a multicolored landscape… with no land in sight.
Only it is, pulling the listener into “Gravity Well” which shrouds the room in a diffused light that’s hard to resist and easy to surrender to once low frequencies throb delicately but insistently until soft waves of extreme tenderness crash on this cosmic shore, and “The Pale Blue Dot” paints a dewdrop wonder on the sparse canvas. A spellbinding trip.