Rival Consoles - Landscape from Memory

A Closer Listen

Rival Consoles (aka Ryan Lee West) is a prolific artist, typically releasing consecutive full-length albums with less than a year’s time in between. Landscape from Memory comes after somewhat of a creative block– we reviewed West’s last album, Now Is, three years ago. Landscape from Memory draws on soundbites the artist had sidelined over the past few years. Returning to these snippets and developing them after a period of reflection has allowed West to create an intimate and stirring listening experience. 

The liner notes for Landscape from Memory describe the album as “a riot of colour,” which is fitting for a record released on the Fourth of July. Interestingly, though, the music video for the track “Soft Gradient Beckons” features an animation made up of an impressive series of Rorschach-like black paintings on white canvas. Like the Rorschach test, the vividity this album conjures lies within the minds of its listeners. “Soft Gradient Beckons” comes fourth out of fourteen tracks, and the album closes in on nearly an hour of total playtime– a typical length for Rival Consoles– so listeners can be sure that this thoughtfully unhurried journey has been worth the wait.

Backtracking to the album’s opener, “In Reverse” (as it were) is laid-back to the point that it’s nearly ambient, though its climax hints at the driving electronic rhythms to come. Slightly more energetic beats arrive in the next track, called “Catherine” after West’s partner, whose encouragement was the catalyst leading the artist to return to the track’s hook, which he’d previously abandoned. One of the album’s most intriguing tracks is “Gaivotas,” which means “seagulls” in Portuguese, though the music video for this one was filmed in Kyrgyzstan. “Gaivotas” is both propulsive and glitchy, lending it a feeling of jittery and uneasy urgency. This type of dark, mysterious intensity is what we’ve come to expect from Rival Consoles. Landscape from Memory is full of West’s trademark intricacy, but it’s also one of his most wide-ranging records to date. Tracks like “Nocturne” and “Tape Loop” are airy rather than electric, offering a respite from the album’s vigor.  

Extended periods of struggle often mark turning points in musicians’ careers. Ryan West wrestled with feelings of being stuck and lost. In return, Landscape from Memory reflects a newfound spaciousness and sense of intention. The album is as much a testament to the artist’s enduring talent as it is to the value of patience in times of uncertainty. (Maya Merberg)