Impressing across delicate folk and ardent rock instrumentals alike, The Sound of Mountains thoroughly engages across the newly released self-titled album. The project represents the one-man band of Christopher Morin, an artist based in Rancho Cucamonga, California. The multi-instrumentalist Morin plays guitars, bass, keys, and drums across the album. Luke Schoepf also plays bass on three tracks, in addition to Jahna Stanton on violin for two tracks, and Maile Hutchinson on viola and violin within the finale “Every Burden, Every Crown.”
“I intended the songs to create a space for reflection, introspection and stir emotions,” Morin explains. “In a similar way to how your mind sort of floats when you are in a beautiful spot in nature.” He also notes writing half the album after getting married, resulting in a positive impact. “I think it gave me more motivation and consistency in my day-to-day that helped getting it all done,” he says.
The opening “Stretch Out Your Hand” conveys a lushly meditative quality in its initial guitar-led spell, expanding in lovely form as heartrending strings delight across the second half; it’s easy to envision this as a wedding-day song, with its grace and beauty. The subsequent “Familiar Locations” develops from tender guitars and shimmering textures into a stirring post-rock, textural embrace.
Another highlight arises in “Wake Up, You Living Gateways!” — a firm display of the project’s capacity for more invigorating rock passion. The Sound of Mountains is a fantastic, compelling listening experience throughout. The production’s captivating instrumentation and climactic structural builds are consistently rewarding.
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“Wake Up, You Living Gateways!” 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.
