Oakland-based act Mayfield Park reveals a dreamy, shoegaze-forward intrigue across the new full-length, ofminorhighercurrents. Released today, the album is a thorough showcase in the atmospheric and melodic strengths coming from the solo instrumental project of Ben Tucker. Mark McGuire’s early material, My Bloody Valentine’s Kevin Shields, and Korean artist Parannoul are cited as notable influences by Tucker, who created the album without any contributions from outside musicians, producers, or engineers.
“Dust Overhead” commences the album with a stirring, atmospheric rock daze — alternating between hazy introspection and jangly trickling. “If it’s Crucial” follows with a more climactic unveiling; quaint jangles and bouncy bass, exuding a post-punk nostalgia, escalate in the final minute — invigorating there with pulsing percussion and twangy guitar brightness. Mayfield Park’s versatility is quickly on display with this strong opening one-two punch, and the quality doesn’t let up from there.
From the comforting, bright jangly composure within “Apple in Disguise” to the delectably foreboding griminess on “Contained,” ofminorhighercurrents impresses with a versatile instrumental rock sound throughout. The concluding, self-titled track is an especially magnetic standout, exuding a starry-eyed appeal into lush synth throbs and gauzy guitar tones. ofminorhighercurrents is a consistently immersive success.
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“ofminorhighercurrents” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
We discovered this release via MusoSoup, as part of the artist’s promotional campaign.
