Hot on the heels of Part 2, Liminal Space EP (Part 3) looks forward from the dark days of the close of 2020 depicted in cuts such as 'Embers' and 'Life As We Knew It' and reflects on motifs of hope and recovery, as depicted through our family's story.
Liminal Space is a three part EP series I started writing during UK Lockdown 1 in 2020. Based on a series of field recordings captured in Cascais, Lisbon, East London and Switzerland, it charts a series of reflections of living in an unfamiliar place - in a place that's not the world we left behind when the pandemic started, and not the one we'll have on the other side. Much like the Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years or Jesus and countless others in scripture who had to journey into a place that's not 'home' - so we have all been forced to inhabit the desert. Barren and hard as this space has been - it's not without hope - the liminal spaces in those times were always marked by encounters with the Living God - be it Moses and his burning bush moment, pillars of cloud and fire for navigation and heat, or even audible voices affirming the identity of Jesus, these times are opportunities to allow God to speak if we are ready to listen.
The third and final part of Liminal Space kicks off with a piece of music I wrote to celebrate the birth of our first son! Gift of Life - I was written in the days ahead of his birth and features a field recording of his gurgles on one of his first days at home with us. It represents a shining joy that cut through the middle of the darkness of the circumstances of the pandemic for us. Brimming with punchy funk riffs and complete with a shift mid-song reflecting the change his arrival brought for us and the multi-faceted nature of his character and our hopes for him, it reflects the incredible event that has and will change our lives forever. Initially cut as a one-off limited, single-sided picture disc vinyl-only run for his grandparents, this version slots perfectly into the Liminal Space narrative in part three which focuses on what we've been able to celebrate during this time as a family.
Freshly Baked follows on neatly - my ode to essential funk and jazz bands that have influenced my DJ sets and writing for the best part of 20 years. Layered upon a field recording taken on a hazy summer evening in the Swiss mountains in Canton Bern, it draws upon UK Northern heavyweights The New Mastersounds, turntable and drum aficionado Dr Rubberfunk, Australian masters Menagerie, The Bamboos, Greyboy Allstars and others to create a warm jazz-funk hybrid that reflects my time during the brighter days trying something new (bread baking! Fococcia anyone?)
10 Days rounds off the entire EP in thunderous style and built on a bassline I woke up with one morning in quarantine whilst working in Switzerland earlier this year. This one does all it can to capture the excitement and elation of being able to re-unite our son with his grandparents, aunt and loved ones after many failed attempts to do so over the previous 15 months (check Missed Connection on Part 2 for how that felt). We end looking forward, knowing that God continues to speak to us through the Spirit of Jesus in this space, however long we're to be here, and knowing that through it all, he has been and will be faithful. The title also serves as a reminder - while things have improved, the pandemic hasn't just 'gone away' and our isolation as part of our trip was a potent reminder of this - grateful as we were to be with family and (close to) friends again.
The EP is written as a segway, with each track blending one into the next. The same goes for between the parts too, so check out Parts 1 & 2 if you haven't already and I hope that you enjoy the journey from one end of the space to the other!
Thanks for listening!
credits
released October 1, 2021
Written, arranged, recorded & produced by Dr. J
Drum arrangements by Dr. J
Drums on Freshly Baked and 10 Days - Andy Bauer
Amazing funk and soul, heartily played and will make any seasoned listener or keen newbie wanna get up and dance! Among my top albums of 2010, no mistake! Dr. J
A hazy, laid-back take on drum & bass from The Hague-based beatmaker, inspired by jaunts along the Californian and Argentinan coasts. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 22, 2023
