Julianna Barwick – The Magic Place
Asthmatic Kitty
-out. Feb. 22
2.5 / 5

The ambient nature of The Magic Place makes Julianna Barwick’s latest a bit tough to place. The tones here are celestial in nature, with strings and vocals that map out a sacred – indeed, magical – scenery. On the other hand, the cyclical, repetitive nature of these ambient tones gives it little form. We’re going to go out on a limb here (the one in the album cover, right over there) and suggest that Ms. Barwick add some spoken lyrics to her work, as that would help give The Magic Place form, story arc and direction. While The Magic Place may satisfy the ever-elusive self-actualized, crunchy-granola hippie, we’re going to pass on giving it a recommendation because, let’s face it, those self-actualized hippies have no sense of musical taste (not to slight Barwick’s intriguing take on music, though). So take a pass, and let’s hope the next one has more variety and arc to it.

Listen to “The Magic Place.”

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