Passchendaele by Ian Drennan

The nine tracks that comprise Passchendaele are, at times, barely audible, with sparse rustlings and obscure clanks providing the minimal-leaning momentum that has become a hallmark of Ian Drennan’s oeuvre.

Drennan’s interest in historical narratives shifts to Belgium’s Western Front with the Battle of Passchendaele, one of the bloodiest and muddiest campaigns of World War I. Here, Drennan soundtracks the morning after the battle with a piano-driven elegy both provoked and presided over by Bellona, the Roman goddess of war. On this battlefield turned graveyard, destruction co-mingles with relief, blanketed by the sense of calm that comes right before rebuilding begins.

Piano does much of the melodic work, keeping with Drennan’s frequent use of acoustic instrumentation alongside more ambiguous timbres. We hear snatches of bugle, subtle drones, and other foley-like textures, which, when amplified by a stereo-panning effect, lend a three-dimensional feel. Notably, the album’s final track bids adieu to the listener with a 32-minute arrangement calling to mind Su Tissue’s dizzying and dazzling Salon de Musique.

Here, east of Ypres, barrenness is a blank slate — and an invitation to begin again. With time and in concert with Drennan’s effort, volatile history becomes beautiful once again.

Passchendaele is available as a pay-as-you-wish download from Soap Library’s Bandcamp.

Soap Library is a holistic cassette tape label in New York City.

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