mirror to mirror: body moving slowly

The Preservation label presents Body Moving Slowly, the second full-length album from California's Mirror To Mirror. Mirror To Mirror is Los Angeles resident Alex Twomey, who has quietly developed a raft of stunning pieces across several low-key works on his own Jugular Forest label, many approaching a ballad-like form in their beauty. His collaboration with Matthew Sullivan (Earn), 1958-2009, became one of the more highly talked-about projects of the past two years, one outing named as NPR's "Best Cassette Release of 2010." Body Moving Slowly represents a major shift from Twomey's towering constructions of ambient synth cloudscapes, choosing to write and record with a variety of instrumental textures outside of the synthesizer. Rippling waves of piano and harpsichord, enveloping keyboard clusters and subtle percussion cuts Twomey's style adrift from its once ominous realm without abandoning it altogether. With lusher details of ringing melody and intimate space, Body Moving Slowly works between the neo-classical, ambient feel of the likes of Harold Budd and the ecstatic, orchestrated pop reverie of Brian Wilson from The Beach Boys. These vivid pieces are melancholic to their core though often burst with exhilarating feeling, a dynamic in scope that shapes this album's life-reflecting push and pull. Twomey's emotional sweep remains dark and compelling on Body Moving Slowly but moves into a more warm, open place, reflecting a special imagination that remains personal within a grand vision. Body Moving Slowly is the fourth work in Preservation's limited edition series Preservation calls "Circa for 2012." Only 300 copies of each release in the series will be available and will feature a design by Mark Gowing. Each design is realized using an abstract alphabet that creates an interlocking grid, determined by artist and volume number for something both fixed, random and unified across the entire series. Mastered by lauded composer Sean McCann.