If you own previous works by Phillip Presswood you’ll want to get this one too; and if you don’t, “Love: The Fifth Season” is just as good a place to start as any other. It’s sweet and melodic – music to wake up to, fall asleep to, make love to, even break up to… pretty much everything, in fact, except dance to of course, as Phillip delves more into textures and moods rather than beats and rhythms. Expect shimmering and swirling pianos together with luscious orchestral arrangements and dreamy vocals you can gently rest your head on.
“Love: The Fifth Season” is a 3 CD set containing 30 songs, so breaking it down into good, better and best tracks is as arduous a task as it is pointless. If you like the multi-layered Enya-type musical and choral arrangements, you’ll love this, and seriously if you cannot find a few songs among the 30 here, which are able to warm the corners of your heart, you need to move on to your beloved Top40 music instead.
Phillip Presswood is one of those very rare acts that come along once in a while with a sound so polarized, so outside of everything else, that he has practically invented a new genre of his own. Whereas artists such as Enya and the like are more bound by epic, fantasy or ethnic themes, Phillip’s music seems to be more intimate and personal, notwithstanding its considerably layered and capacious structures. And I think that’s mainly due to his extensive use of rich and deep piano tones which are almost always at the forefront of many of the arrangements.
I highly recommend this album to anyone who is interested in listening to sounds that evoke an emotional response rather than your usual two-bit chill or new age albums. It’s instantly accessible in places, which is good, especially when the music’s integrity doesn’t suffer, but Phillip never exchanges the hidden treasures to be found on repeated listening for instant gratification. Presswood’s template is followed to the letter on each song – beautiful washes of sound that evoke mood and memory, along with layers of intrigue, meant to enthrall and transport the listener to places near or far – an absolutely essential listen for anyone with any interest in high quality, emotive and beautifully textured music.
“Love: The Fifth Season” is fascinating, beautiful stuff. For hypnotic, atmospheric, mysterious, melodic standouts, check out A True Love Story, Lunar Eclipse, Days Unknown, Where I’ll Be, Before the Sunrise, Ghosttown, Hear it All the Time, Love and You Will See and The Hesitant Heart, but this really is only the tip of the iceberg.
This beautiful album is full of drifting sounds, mesmerizing moods and sweetly pensive vocals. This is Phillip Presswood at his best and it is wonderful – warm, imaginative and soporific.
OFFICIAL LINKS: Artist Website – Facebook – Twitter
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