Reaching Out further showcases the jazz and classical entrancement from the James McGowan Ensemble, the 13-piece group who impressed last year with their album Reaching In. This latest release is a proper companion piece. “Reaching Out tells my story through words and music of moving past grief to find strength in community,” McGowan explains. “I truly think that everyone will be able to relate to it and find personal resonance in this journey.”
“Personal Credo” opens the album with an aptly dynamic flair, spanning from lush piano twinkling fervent orchestral power; it’s an enjoyable declaration of the sounds ahead, which delightfully traverse across eclectic tonal arrays. “Imagine, Pt. 4” follows with intense vocal meditations, heart-tugging strings, and jazzy rhythmic pushes. “But in reaching in, you persevered; you sought and found your special song,” the vocals let out, sending chills are guitars and strings coalesce with seamless immersion.
The album’s riveting title track arrives with an initial bass-y momentum and culminates in passionate displays of strings and brass, showing a vibrant intrigue following the instrumental opener and then the vocal momentum within “Imagine, Pt. 4.” “Reaching Out” stirs especially at the mid-point, where prairie-reminiscent strings moves into an assortment of burgeoning brass with an exuberant charm. The highlights continue from there, ranging from elegant immersion of “Alone in a Crowd” to the epic “Reflection,” containing 10+ minutes of heartrending orchestral evolution. Reaching Out is another ravishing output from the James McGowan Ensemble.
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“Minding My Time” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
