Plays Liberace

Ambient-drone. Reputed to have been the world’s highest paid entertainer for more than a decade, pianist and showman Liberace died in 1987, and in the last 30 years his legacy has become increasingly ghostly. That sense of disappearance comes across in Will Long’s interpretation of his music: a cassette copy of Wonderful Liberace run through an effects chain until the result sounds like the opposite of its source. Everything feels cool, unflashy, tranquil, dim, engulfed by low winds. Simultaneously calming and unsettling. I love Celer, and this is another winner. RIYL The Caretaker, Greg Gorlen, Adam Pacione. No words, no FCCs. 2’s my favorite, but all are great.

1. (27:19)—First half follows a faded, Caretaker-eqsue melody. Second half is deeper and even more minimal and focuses on a single drone pulse.
2. *(11:56)—Currents drifting upward, chords glimmering softly. Like being alone at an indoor pool. Long fadeout.
3. (10:32)—Nocturnal, muted, uneasy, like signals from machines running underwater.