Book of Beyond – Cerulean Blue – Vinyl LP

Numn, the NYC psychedelic instrumental trio Pitchfork dubbed as ‘savvynavigators of paths less traveled’, is releasing it’s second album Book of Beyondon the legendary Shimmy Disc label. With this record, the band, which includesJoel Mellin and Christopher Romero of Gamelan Dharma Swara and ambientcountry pioneer Bob Holmes of SUSS, continues to stretch their exploration ofthe inner and outer astral worlds of their first release Voyage au Soleil – votedone of the Best Ambient Releases of 2020.Dave Segal of Pitchfork called that album a “blending of the opiated psychedeliaof the music territory staked Brightback Morning Light with a loose-limbedminimalism that privileges subtle effects and incremental chord changes” andChris Ingalis from PopMatters called it “a trippy, ambient ride and ambitiousdebut that pulls off the neat trick of creating music that evokes space travelwhile also sounding refreshingly grounded to Earth’s atmosphere.”The new album, mastered by Kramer (Galaxie 500, Butthole Surfers, Bongwater,Low, Bill Frisell, etc.) features a unique mixture of Eastern and Western musicalstylings and instrumentation including balinese gamelan, gender wayang, andcumbuz (a 12-string fretless banjo) alongside the classic Americana instrumentation of slide guitar, baritone, mandolin and violin. The instrumental music chartsnew territories as it explores themes that are sometimes deeply personal,spiritual and otherworldly, including new fatherhood, sleep deprivation, loss andrebirth with titles that include Steps, Vespers, Eyes Open & Lullaby. Guests onthe album include Trina Basu (Brooklyn Raga Massive), Tori Lo Mellin (DharmaSwara), and Willa Roberts (Black Sea Hotel). With their new album, Book ofBeyond, numn creates music that provides a star map to help us all navigatethe inner constellations of our daily lives.