‘Autumn Falls’ is a reflective odyssey blending all the elements of Dean Burnett’s minimalistic styles. The music drifts between waves of ambience and gently pulsating rhythmic elements. The album opens with ‘Dawn in the Highlands’ and the haunting tones of distant bagpipes. Next comes the longest track on the album ‘Mediation’, with its strange and compelling synth voices seemingly calling to the listener from within the gentle drones. ‘Ferry Man’ continues the drifting ambience but with a gentle piano echoing its delays across the soundscape.
‘I am Flame’ introduces delicate rhythmic percussion and the effective and beautifully evocative spoken vocal of Carys. ‘Mother’ is another minimalist track, the piano returning over a slowly evolving pad, a solitary distant drum punctuating the mix. The title track is superb; another very minimalist piece punctuated by piano chords around which the ethereal voice of Carys caresses the listener as she recites her descriptive, self penned narrative! ‘Reflection’ continues the exceptionally high quality, this time with Dean reciting a thought provoking poem on getting
older over a slow and rhythmic synth backdrop. A very poignant track! ‘What About the Children’ sees a shift in tone, if not in style. This is a more upfront, but restrained “angry” instrumental piece…with its subtle undertones no doubt reflecting the horrors of the world. A cool percussive element dominates ‘I Am Always Here’. Again, very minimalist in its approach, but a full sounding track nonetheless, enhanced by the voice of Carys. ‘Sand and Dust’ changes the mood again with a melancholy duduk lead over a pulsating kick and delayed effects. ‘Last Days of August’ and ‘Mountains and Lochs’ close the album with, respectively, a wistful and then atmospheric feel.
A stunning new release by Dean Burnett, this is both a thoughtful and a thought provoking album, full of great ideas, beautifully recorded and deserving of a wider audience. Highly recommended.
 
This album is available as a factory pressed, duplicated CD on digipack with 8 page booklet.
Genre: Ambient, Chillout, electronic, New Age
 
Dean Burnett | Autumn Falls | CD