Album Review: Elbow – Flying Dream 1

If there’s anything that’s a given is that the last year and a half has not been a normal time to be living through. Most of us have had to adjust in countless ways and there have been a lot of intense and conflicting feelings. So there’s something to be said about an album released in 2021 that drips with dreaminess, kindness, and hope. 

 

May I present to you Flying Dream 1

 

If you’re looking for something raucous, look elsewhere. The name of this album describes it perfectly and I would further describe it as a combination of latter days Talk-Talk and Peter Gabriel, except that the melancholy you can find in songs has a heavy dose of hope. It’s an emotion Elbow is masterful in tapping into and it’s possible thanks to combining all the elements that make up this band. The curious thing is that this band has always been on top form. If you listen to their debut, Asleep in the Back, it sounds like a seasoned band. That was 20 years ago and what’s happened with the band is that they’ve explored a variety of textures and approached music in a way I’d describe as minimalist prog. They don’t go for speed or mind bending time signatures though they are meticulous in the placement of every single element, from main instruments to backing vocals and orchestral arrangements, and small electronic flourishes and drumbeats. It's always music that invites you to dig in and see the layers for there are countless. 

 

Another way I’d describe the use of instrumentation is that each instrument truly plays with the rest in the sense that there’s a literal playfulness in how the band plays and that only comes about through chemistry and understanding each other. The track Is it a Bird is a perfect example of this where there’s space for the track to sneak in a lot of magic. The winds and the bass in this song border on exquisite. It’s jazzy in a very floaty way and that’s a word I’d use for a lot of the songs here, floaty or ethereal, or well, dreamy. Depending on the track, the lead player will either be the guitar, the keys, or everyone takes turns like a round robin of quirky passages and riffs. 

 

It’s curious that what brings it all together are often the vocals and Guy Garvey’s lyrics and vocals are a thing of beauty quite often. For me, he has a tone that just makes me smile in a many layered way. It’s easy to see why he draws so much attention though it punches through thanks often to Craig Potter’s wonderful work on the keys. Everyone plays a huge roll in this band, though what the keys bring is something very special. 

 

Seeing some interviews, Guy Garvey described the songs as love letters to each other as a band and I think that’s an exceptionally apt way to describe this album. It’s music where you can feel how happy they are to be together playing and that they recorded tracks at the Brighton Theater also comes through the music. It’s theatrical, occasionally quirky, but never in a rush to anything, and with what this year has entailed, I for one welcome this dreamy slowburn and the dreams I’m sure they’ll inspire. 

As for me...2022 seems like a great year for another Odventure and you can be sure this album will be keeping me company. 

Peace, love, and dreamy maki rolls

#SoftNaNo

November. 

A month where we think of Thanksgiving, where Fall gets confused with Winter in some countries or states, where leaves finally turn to new shades of wonderful colors, and where writers dive into National Novel Writing Month (also known as NaNo Wrimo – Pronounced [Na-no -Wry-Moe]).

 

I’ve done both NaNo Wrimo and Camp NaNoWrimo and have benefitted from both. To participate in NaNo during November, the goal is to write 50,000 words in one month. If ALL you’re doing is writing, it’s a doable task and one that teaches you discipline and has a very active community in many places around the world. For Camp NaNo, you’re the one who establishes the writing goals for the month. It’s more flexible and can be as intense or as loosey goosey as you want. Before I knew what Camp NaNo was, there was a moment where I did something I called #NaNoEstrada during November and set my own goals for several projects. In the end, the intention of this wonderful effort is to get people writing, creating habits, and pushing everyone a bit…but for some people, FULL NaNo is a bit intimidating and often frustrating. 

 

In my case, November has often been problematic for this type of writing because in the industries I’ve worked in, November often brings end of the year campaigns, communications, events, and beyond and adding 50,000 words to that is batty at best. From what I gather, I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one for whom the month does little in the way of cooperating. This can lead to stress, frustration, angst, dread, and all sorts of goodies that we’re basically piling on ourselves.

 

2021 has had its own agenda and I’ve had to adjust continuously to stay afloat and motivated. So for this year, I’m doing what I’m labeling #SoftNaNo. It is closer to Camp NaNo but for me, I’m not measuring any word count or page count, I’m just focusing on broader milestones, i.e. finishing a chapter, outlining a story arc, writing a short story, writing three poems, editing a chapter or section of a book, and stuff of the sort. Although I have an overall idea of what I want to achieve during the month, there are two main goals: Creating Momentum & Enjoying the Process.

 

Too often I see people fixated on word/page count, on pushing, and pushing, and pushing, and enjoyment is set to a side. I’m not saying this is the case for everyone, by the way. I’m saying this has happened to me and I’ve seen it happen to others. This has everything to do with people finding motivation in different things and in different ways and that leads me to something I often recommend: do what works for you.

 

The NaNo Community offers a lot of support, but not everyone is on your side, which goes for pretty much every community. There are people who are in a constant state of worry and worry can be quite contagious. There are other people who share their word counts in a very arrogant manner and you see a person here and there who takes NaNo as the chance to compete and belittle fellow writers, which goes against the very core of what NaNo WriMo is. NaNo is about the individual AND the collective. It’s about rallying yourself and others. It’s about motivation and momentum. It’s not a word-count swinging competition for however much some people insist it is or at least I don’t think it should be (and I suspect I’m not alone).

 

With #SoftNaNo, what I’ve done is commit myself to do something writing related every single day and sometimes, that doesn’t even include writing a single word. Too often we focus on getting the words down that we lose our way in a story. As I’ve been working on Beyond Human, I also have a lot of other projects and what I’m in the mood for one day is not the same as the next. This includes short story collections, translations, and future outlines. If time or focus have not been on my side, I’ve sat down to have a proper think about the story, where it is, where it’s going and that led to adjusting 12 chapters of my outline after 2-3 times of sitting down to think. I’ve done a lot of writing by hand and have held from transcribing in the hopes of giving things time to settle a bit. I’ve also revisited some texts from a soon-to-come release and have adjusted accordingly. The goal is to achieve flow as often and in as many ways as possible and to be honest, it’s been very lovely.

 

I’ve stayed away from beating myself up over typos, unmet goals, and other stuff, and have instead focused on being mindful of all the things I’m doing, which includes leisure, relaxing, and research (i.e. watching movies, playing video games, reading, posting random stuff on social media, and enjoying life). Which reminds me, I’ve been posting more random stuff and not being so strict ALL the time about what I post and how I post it. Again, while some people are turning it up to 11 or 12, I’m turning it down and it’s been lovely. 

 

Life can often be hard…and sometimes the best way to meet something like that head-on is to be soft in return. I’m posting this today because we’re halfway through the month and halfway through NaNo. If you need to switch things up? By all means, take this as an invitation to cut yourself some slack. If full NaNo is working for you, cheers, kudos, and keep at it. I salute all writers during this month. May the muses dance with all of us and may we all write a collective storm. 

 

Peace, love, and maki rolls