Sam Thomas - Blind Theatre [CD]

'Blind Theatre' is the startling debut album by 25-year-old London-based studio prodigy Sam Thomas, a panoramic soundscape of moods, emotions and fearsome musical virtuosity. Recorded over a period of four years, the latter two with producer Mark Sutherland, the album presents a multi-hued aural and emotional journey, ebbing and flowing between stretches of pastoral calm and huge, swelling crescendos constructed from soaring walls of guitars and strings. Sam's symphonic soundscapes touch on anything from blues-rock ('Arnold's Circus'), space-funk ('Ojera'), dubstep (the rusty bass-chain of 'Gift') to his beloved 1930s Disney cartoon soundtracks, which underpin the strong element of childhood nostalgia, particularly on the kids' narrative of 'I'm Gonna Be A Witch'. Sam is equally as capable of setting up evocative mood pieces, such as the piano-led 'Isis' (inspired by Devon and Cornwall's rolling terrain) and crashing panorama of 'North', a perfect example of his suddenly-unleashed emotional surges being reflected in the music's innate dynamics and frequent peaks. The ever-skyrocketing climax of 'Lanterns' can only be described as an aural Mount Everest, again highlighting the cinematic quality of much of the music (This side will be even more brought out on the next album gestating in his head: 'I'd love to do more soundtracks as well as making albums,' he says). 'I like big build-ups, starting with something quiet and nice, hopefully beautiful, then going massive and terrifying. I like to shake up people's moods.' Sam insists that the album is best experienced as a whole, working on many emotional levels and dense with fresh discoveries on subsequent airings: a labour of love by a ferocious new talent, where music of the past has been distilled through one talented, relentlessly determined soul into something fresh and rivetingly new.