GuidedBySpirits

This eponymous release from songwriter Amelia Poe, aka Paula Catherine Valencia (of Crystal Radio and Blind Divine), is a graceful solo debut album. It’s clear that a true poet is at the helm here in the spare progressions of vocals and the lyrical pacing of the songs in general. The strong presence of a central speaker carries through the album, revealing a personal story of beauty found in dark places. Gorgeous vocals travel an impressive range from low distortions to clear, bright pop, often with both voices providing different points of view within the same song. Lush soundscapes crafted in collaboration with backing band Trees Speak (Damian Demetrius Diaz and Daniel Martin Diaz) are interspersed throughout the album, allowing the listener moments to reflect between the thoughtful lyrics so that everything may be properly absorbed. Tethered to ground by classic beats, often waltzing or swinging, Amelia Poe’s songs cast out into the aether with soaring vocals, accompanied by tremolo guitar, synth bursts and other modern textures in counterpoint. Often these arrangements swell gradually over the course of a song until reaching their resolution in a place of fullness, just shy of breaking open into something uncontrolled. These otherworldly songs maintain their mystery throughout. Something is always going on behind or underneath, something you can’t quite reach, like a half-faded memory, a ghost peripherally glimpsed. -Coleman Stevenson

This Guided By Spirits vinyl re-release of Prelude by veteran Tucson musician Brian Lopez is a vulnerable lo-fi masterpiece focused on capturing the energy of the moment and letting it shine. Lopez originally recorded these ten songs over a two-week period from 6pm until 4am in his bedroom. These self-imposed rules for writing and recording achieve an intriguingly minimalist yet lush sound, impossible to place in time. Elements of folk, pop, classical, and even the occasional tear of heavy guitar blend seamlessly, proving Lopez is in service to whatever the message demands, including shifts between languages mid song. His poetic gifts are highlighted on this album, with echoes, birdsong, and insect hum adding texture around thoughtful lyrics. While Lopez allows that “mistakes are beautiful and increasingly rare in recorded music,” his sweet, pristine vocals never fail in their delicate melodic layerings. These bright bursts of song are so intimate you can hear his fingers on the strings, you can picture him at work in his room, allowing the music to take shape organically. The authenticity of both process and results leave the listener feeling full of hope and possibility. -Coleman Stevenson

GENE TRIPP: Bird Song In The Drone

SIDE A
Tree of Life
Top Of The Hill
Being Sober Is Not Living
Is It
Here It Comes

SIDE B
Sun City Dreaming
This Will Not Last
Being The Voices
Birdsong In The Drone
Where Does The Time Go

Gene Tripp’s new release Bird Song in the Drone is an exercise in dichotomy - jangling yet delicate, grounded but spacey, empty and also somehow full. Embracing a desert noir vision from the mind of enigmatic musician Jay Hufman, this cohesive collection curated by Guided By Spirits Records offers a surrealistic, country-esque experience. Sounds bend and expectations warp as disparate elements merge flawlessly into songs. Classic 50s bad-boy crooner vocals and clockwork waltzes distort with psychedelic effects, rendering this album anachronistic and timeless. The use of reverb on songs like the title track create a space for the listener, almost like a room that opens up for you to walk into, sit down, lean back, and take it in. At every moment, something seems to be rising up from deep below – inside the music, inside the self. Perhaps what this album invokes will be different for every listener, but its incantatory quality is undeniable. -Coleman Stevenson

About: Guided by Spirits
Guided By Spirits Records showcases under-the-radar musicians that the world needs to hear. Specializing in unreleased and selectively curated music, the eclectic Guided By Spirits sound defies categorization, and honors techniques and textures of the past, as well as, contemporary musical technology. The label was founded in 2015, by Daniel Martin Diaz (Trees Speak) and Amelia Poe aka Paula Catherine Valencia (Crystal Radio) to meet the collective needs of musicians in their Tucson, AZ, circle and to champion artists who share their creative values of authenticity, experimentation, and solid songwriting. The subsequent partnership with Wooden Tooth Records, run by Jake Sullivan and Kellen Fortier, helped to make the releases more accessible to the public. Guided By Spirits is equally dedicated to the visual impact of their records, with each cover artist carefully chosen for their unique ability to represent that album’s aesthetic. Recent releases include albums by Brian Lopez, Gene Tripp, Amelia Poe, and Vol. 1 of the Dust and Stone Recordings by producer/musician Gabriel Sullivan.