Exotic Plants and Flowers

Concept and analysis

'Exotic Plants and Flowers', is an 18 track concept album released in 2017. As well as displaying fantasy elements, there is a strong sci-fi theme running through this album. Four of the tracks appear as part of the 'Exotic Plants and Flowers Suite'. These compositions, 'Prayer', 'Sun Forest', 'Space Tribe', and 'Green-Eyed Gypsy Girl', are not remarkable in themselves, but act as points of reference to signify change in the album's content and mood. The album's material was composed and recorded over a period of three to four months.

The opening track, 'Prayer', is entirely organ-based, and acts as an opening incantation to the forces of nature and music. 'The House on Haight Street' is almost like a live jam. This psychedelic 'rock-out' is one of my favourite album tracks, and gave me some much needed local radio play. 'Exoplanet' is a space-themed, sci-fi soundscape, utilizing a variety of sound effects from the Yamaha MODX6 synthesizer. 'Pleiades Star Glider' and 'Sun Forest' take bright, ambient themes, and enhances them with a few choice synths, adding a touch of sci-fi sparkle along the way as the track grows, blooms like a flower, then fades again. 'Betelgeuse (Proximity Mix)' conceptualizes, musically, a precarious journey past the famous red supergiant. Being the tenth-brightest star in the night sky, such a journey, if possible, would be remarkable, especially since it could go supernova anytime! 'Uzone-25' is an electronic, synth-based composition, depicting a bleak, dystopian future, where the inhabitants of a futuristic London live out their lives in old underground stations, such as UZone-25. 'Her Side of the Solar Wind' and 'Off-World Retro' rekindle the album's space theme, and lead onto the excellent 'Space Tribe', one of my best synth-based tracks on the album. 'Scorch Wizard' and 'Circus Waltz' borrow faded Victorian fantasy tropes and give them a unique musical identity. Who wouldn't want to dance with the Scorch Wizard as magical flutes serenade his majestic court? And who wouldn't want to run away with the travelling circus when it comes to town? 'Through The Pod Door' is a sci-fi soundscape that any self-respecting film director would be happy to use in their next sci-fi trilogy. Imagine opening the airlock on your space pod, and stepping out into an alien world, where a biting hurricane wind suddenly disperses the purple gaseous cloud surrounding you, revealing the outline of a crashed spacecraft, millions of years old. 'Bleach City' is more dark and dystopian in its outlook, taking a leaf out of George Orwell's 'Animal Farm' then twisting it back on itself. 'Andromeda Train' features a sad ambient piano tune that is both engaging and wistful. The final track on the album, 'Green-Eyed Gypsy Girl', takes an explosive synth arpeggiator and adds a meandering violin solo over the top of glistening sound effects and further synthesizer parts, courtesy of the Korg M50 and Yamaha MODX6. A powerful end to a colourful, and varied album.

Instrumentation

• Korg M50 synthesizer

• Korg R3 synthesizer

• Fender Stratocaster electric guitar

• Danelectro 12 string electric guitar

• Fender electric bass guitar

• Boss Dr Rhythm drum machine

Finished product

'Exotic Plants and Flowers' was a fun album to compose and record. Digital sales have always been at the top end of the scale. As always, most album tracks have been released with new, amazing artwork. Check out the Music Page or go direct to Spotify or iTunes to view them.