Glider (The Sight Below album)

Glider
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 11, 2008
Recorded2007–2008, Seattle, Washington, United States
GenreAmbient techno, shoegazing
Length49:08
LabelGhostly International
ProducerThe Sight Below
The Sight Below chronology
No Place for Us
(2008)
Glider
(2008)
Murmur
(2009)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
The A.V. Club(B)[2]
DOA(very positive)[3]
Foxy Digitalis[4]
Pitchfork Media(6.8/10)[5]
PopMatters[6]
RA[7]
Tiny Mix Tapes[8]

Glider is the first full-length album by American ambient techno musician The Sight Below, released on November 11, 2008 by Ghostly International. It was released worldwide in January 2009 with a bonus track, only available at the label's digital store. The album was recorded live in Seattle during the winter of 2007-2008 and focuses on manipulated electric guitar sounds, equally influenced by shoegazing, ambient techno, and 4AD's early catalog.

According to several interviews, The Sight Below didn't use any synthesizers on Glider.[9] The ambient drones and soundscapes on the album were created by performing with a viola bow or light pick and running guitars through a chain of reverb, delays, and looping effects, with a stronger emphasis on textures and subliminal rhythmic patterns.

The album was very well received by the press and music community, including praise from Radiohead's Thom Yorke, who charted "At First Touch" on his January 6, 2009 "Office Chart" posting on the band's website Dead Air Space.[10]

Glider shares its title with a 1990 My Bloody Valentine EP, an influence on The Sight Below's music.

Glider's desolated artwork imagery was created and designed by graphic artist Michael Cina. The inner sleeve contains a quote from Albert Camus. In an interview with Seattle's The Stranger newspaper, The Sight Below stated being influenced by Camus' work as a teenager.[11]

Track listing

  1. "At First Touch" – 4:53
  2. "Dour" – 4:54
  3. "Without Motion" – 4:38
  4. "Life's Fading Light" – 5:46
  5. "Further Away" – 6:00
  6. "The Sunset Passage" – 3:49
  7. "Already There" – 5:44
  8. "A Fractured Smile" – 5:09
  9. "Nowhere" – 8:19
  10. "Feeling Lost Forever" (Digital-only bonus track)

Personnel

References

  1. ^ Andy Kellman. "Glider". Allmusic. Retrieved March 29, 2012.
  2. ^ Matos, Michaelangelo (November 10, 2008). "The Sight Below: Glider". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on January 29, 2009. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  3. ^ "The Sight Below – Glider/No Place For Us EP : DOA". Adequacy.net. November 13, 2008. Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  4. ^ Paul Simpson (February 12, 2009). "The Sight Below "Glider"". Foxy Digitalis. Archived from the original on February 26, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  5. ^ Brian Howe (March 5, 2009). "The Sight Below: Glider". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved March 29, 2012.
  6. ^ Dominic Umile (December 3, 2008). "The Sight Below: Glider". PopMatters. Archived from the original on June 7, 2012. Retrieved March 29, 2012.
  7. ^ Derek Miller (November 17, 2008). "The Sight Below - Glider (Album)". Resident Adviser. Archived from the original on December 10, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  8. ^ Lukas Suveg. "The Sight Below - Glider". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on January 29, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  9. ^ "// Cuemix Magazine //". // Cuemix Magazine //. Archived from the original on February 25, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  10. ^ "Office chart for South America - RADIOHEAD | Dead Air Space". Radiohead. March 10, 2008. Archived from the original on November 20, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  11. ^ "High on the Down Low by Dave Segal - Seattle Music - The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper". Thestranger.com. Archived from the original on August 6, 2011. Retrieved February 18, 2012.