Sean McCann - Sincere World

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Genre: Ambient, Drone, Experimental, Electronic

Label: Amethyst Sunset Records

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Sincere World, which was due out almost a year ago as I understand it, has finally been released for the world to enjoy. Sean McCann has worn many various emotions and experiments on his sleeve through his musical output over the previous years. Some are wild and zany, some are more serious and solemn, some are exciting and vivacious, and others have many different nuances within the same album yet all with the same creative stroke of genius that makes McCann such a master. Sincere World is more of the serious and solemn persuasion. It’s borderline ambient, yet with the McCannian twist of personified drone. In the same vein as Fountains and Leave Today as far as subdued and quiet nature, but it has a living and stirring nature that isn’t quite as restful as those two others. This is a restless, tossing-and-turning, insomniac series of drones. They stir with a baggy-eyed longing for respite, counting sheep, tossing back a nightcap, whatever it takes to settle down and catch some Z’s. There is a calm and nocturnal nature to the ambiance, but I just don’t hear a settling down, a final stillness. To me, they kick the covers and lie staring at the ceiling in frustrated sleepless torture. Everything feels dark with only the slightest illumination that highlights the shadows on the wall. Not dark as in black or foreboding, just lightlessness. And all the anguished sleep deprivation is not anything felt by the hearer. I just call upon this descriptive metaphor because there is a stillness and gentleness that reminds you of the night, yet not all is at peace. There’s still life and movement that’s pregnant within these tracks. The best comparison would be the actions of one in bed who cannot seem to fall asleep. That said, the timbre of this album is fairly tranquil and great for midnight boredom or late night soul searching.