1. Ghosts In The Gale, 2. Recoiled, 3. Ill Tides, 4. Burdensome, 5. At Odds, 6. A Tense Spiral, 7. The Fog Of Our Primes, 8. Evaporate, 9. Entrenched, 10. Furthest Shore
Composer and songwriter William Ryan Fritch has created an enormous and diversely inspired catalog of music in his ten year career; it leaves many to wonder does the man even sleep, and how is this much creativity still pouring out of him. On October 21, 2016, Lost Tribe Sound releases ‘Ill Tides’; Fritch’s 14th full-length album under his own name. The album is available digitally and physically as part of LTS’s new series Dead West, a series of limited cassette tape editions.
For some, the make-up of ‘Ill Tides’ will beg comparison to his 2013 soundtrack for the Oscar nominated film ’The Waiting Room’, or last year’s ‘Music For Film Vol I.’. Such examples do provide good context, but may sell this new material short. Whereas most film music requires delivering concise, mood setting pieces, ‘Ill Tides’ was not created for any particular film. Fritch's aim for each song on ‘Ill Tides' was to be just that, a fully realized song, not bound by the time constraints and half finished narratives of commercial work.
‘Ill Tides’ pours like a smokey, velveted glass of whiskey for the ears. Ten richly textured songs form the bedrock of the album, with Fritch opting for a minimal and purely instrumental sonic palette made up of soaring mournful strings, rolling harp melodies, waterlogged drum lines, and hazy waves of tape distortion. The overtly oceanic theme of ‘Ill Tides’ could either suggest these songs do indeed tell the tale of some journey across the black seas and sun-drenched coastlines, or simply be a reference to the distinct ebb and flow of the album's architecture. As with most of Fritch’s storytelling; one absolute interpretation is never the intended answer.
Rest assured, this is no neo-classical snooze fest. It holds it’s own against any of the best experimental rock albums out there. As for us at Lost Tribe Sound, this is music that we live and die for, set in a timbre that makes our heart beat wildly . ‘Ill Tides’ is a rugged, hand built vessel but make no bones about it, she’s seaworthy.
All songs written, recorded and mastered by William Ryan Fritch
Design and Layout by Ryan Keane
Published by Settled Scores LLC (ASCAP 2016)
Copyright by Lost Tribe Sound, LLC
