I think one characteristic of an exceptional artist is consistency. Being able to release one or two records that are great and having the rest of the discography range from lukewarm to so-so seems to be a common thing nowadays. Not many artists are able to consistently retain greatness even with the consideration that everyone has different perspectives and opinions towards music. One artist that has consistently shook the realm of electronic music is Nicolas Jaar. Whether it’s his solo work with abstract ambient pieces and vocalized art pop influences on Space Is Only Noise and Sirens respectively or his ingenuitive take on house music with his side-project Against All Logic, he nevers fails to impress music fans. Well when I heard Nicolas Jaar had released another record, Cenizas, less than two months after the great 2017 – 2019 I was admittedly skeptical. I still expected something good, but the short time frame worried me of another artist releasing too much material too quickly. In actuality, Cenizas stands tall aside the rest of his discography.

There are a few quick observations I made when listening to Cenizas. If we’re not counting Pomegranates as it is a soundtrack, this is the first studio album of his that doesn’t heavily take influence from various styles of house music. Rather Cenizas takes the abstract ambient nature of Space Is Only Noise and combines it with the vocal inclusions of Sirens for a spiritual aesthetic. He also slightly expands his palette of genres by adding in elements of electroacoustic. All of these components come together for a subtle record with a keen focus towards looming silence accented by a wide variety of instrumentation. One could argue that there is an overarching theme or story being told, but personally I don’t hear it. Each track is pretty much a vignette meant to emit an emotion that is sometimes upfront and immediately noticeable and other times abstract and almost cryptic with its purpose.

The opening track “Vanish” is a stellar example of Nicolas Jaar’s skill as an ambient artist. With only synths combining warm and cold tones and ominously beautiful vocal layering over a droning and pulsating bass the track creates a bleak feeling of emptiness. The vocals are made even more interesting with what they’re saying sounding like both “Say you’re coming back” and “Satan come back” leaving it a mystery for the listener to decide. The following track “Menysid” gives off a Giles Corey vibe in the beginning with its shaking spacious synths, low hymnal hums, and crackling percussion creating a creepy atmosphere. As the track continues the percussion grows more metallic in its production with a lethargic and somber piano meandering along with it. Doubling down on atmosphere is the title track after which makes use of its slow currents of bassy drones and synths exceptionally alongside Nicolas Jaar’s broken vocals. He sounds haunting almost lost with what to do and cannot find an answer that would solve things. The cut in the middle does lose the flow of the track a little with only a light ringing connecting the front and back end with no progression, but still a good track nonetheless.

From here Cenizas begins to be more liberal with its collage of sounds. “Agosto” for the most part is very empty, but the accenting clarinet locks you in along with some glitchy synths. It’s one of the first tracks where the immaculate production shines juxtaposing the subtle ambience with hypnotic and sometimes abrasive instrumentation. Following it is “Gocce” which further pushes this idea with its marching pianos echoing in the background while entire scales of pianos are blared to the forefront with some indigenous drums accompanying. A feeling of getting lost in thought and having negative emotions jump out uncontrollably while you try to hold them in to no avail comes to mind. Nearing the halfway point we are met with “Mud”, a seven minute march of pounding drums and fluttering synths and bells among other instruments. I love a lot of what happens within the track especially the sacred vocals at the beginning and the piano flares at the end, but I feel it could have been shortened in the middle for the purpose of brevity and keeping a steady flow between each track’s ideas.

Beginning the second half of Cenizas is “Vacíar” which much like “Cenizas” has a barren feel to it with its waves of drones and the occasional woodwind thrown in. Not much else interesting occurs making it the least evocative track on the album. “Sunder” right after utilizes the low drones much better with hammered dulcimers beautifully texturing matching the overall aesthetic of the song. Contrasting “Sunder” is the next track “Hello, Chain” which begins with cavernous swells that shake me to my core. It then subsides into melancholic plucking and vocals that are both tranquil and eerie before progressing into collages of constantly transforming synths with a great progression behind it. Subsequently “Rubble” removes the subtle beauty of the last track and features clunking percussion underneath these abstract and spastic woodwinds that still feel in control of the mood. We then get “Garden” which is one of Nicolas Jaar’s more straightforward ambient piano pieces. The chord progression is a driving force behind the track and its lugubrious tone. Next is the cacophonous “Xerox” which is loaded with abrasive horns, hard-hitting percussion, and Micheal Gira-esque humming at the beginning. This would have made for a stellar track if its backend didn’t feel disjointed from the front.

Finishing off Cenizas in a hopeful manner is “Faith Made of Silk”. Its meditative vibe doesn’t try to hide the darkness in its somber synths and percussion, but the vocals reveal a glimmer of hope beyond the horizon while the mantra “look around not ahead” reflects the need to examine your current position before reaching beyond. It would have made the perfect ending if it didn’t abruptly cut out to silence for the last minute. That’s a minor gripe though like the rest of my problems with Cenizas. They never take away from the evocative mosaics painted with each track. Even without a solid narrative connecting the pieces, the power each possesses continues to show that Nicolas Jaar remains unmatched in his evocative style of ambient. Cenizas is yet another step forward in Nicolas Jaar’s musical journey of constantly experimenting with new sounds.

Best Tracks: “Vanish”; “Menysid”; “Agosto”; “Gocce”; “Sunder”; “Hello, Chain”; “Rubble”; “Garden”; “Faith Made of Silk”

Worst Track: “Vacíar”

Rating: 8/10

Released: 03/27/2020

Label: Other People

Genres: Ambient, Electroacoustic, Drone

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RATING SCALE

Perfect Excellent Great Very Good Good Meh Disappointing Bad Horrible Pitiful Bottom of the Barrel