It’s not easy to pull off an evocative, densely layered epic of sax, strings, synths and singing while maintaining a soft-as-silk touch, but Bristol’s Ishmael Ensemble have achieved that gorgeous balance on their second album. Loosely associated with the UK jazz scene, ringleader Pete Cunningham and co’s sound has more in common with Atoms for Peace, Jon Hopkins or Bon Iver. Here, they weave harp glissando, rippling keys and propulsive beats with a lambent flair that grows richer with every listen.
Wax Werk, with its pitched-up vocal and deep womp, feels like a Four Tet-style sliver of stammering electronica until the sax rises into a skronky noise freakout. Soma Centre turns into a sultry electro stomper that wouldn’t be out of place on a Soulwax record.
Nods to the collective’s hometown musical heritage, begun on 2019 debut A State of Flow, continue. Empty Hands is their astral-jazz-goes-industrial answer to Massive Attack’s Teardrop, with stunning vocals by the band’s Holysseus Fly; local talent crops up on standouts Looking Glass and The Gift (Bristol’s Stanlæy and Tiny Chapter). The influences are loud and clear, but Visions of Light has just enough ambition and grace to shine brightly all on its own.
