Silhouettes and Strange Shapes Review

I’ve been following what Taylor Hutchison has been doing with “Antjae” for a while now. Some of you may remember “Seasick Lullabies”, a thirteen minute EP that immediately made me feel all of the energy and hope of a Thrice concert. With cleverly distorted guitar tones and heart thumping drum beats that give way to some very cool breaks and headbanging, it thumbs the heartstrings with abandon. All this, immediately before melting away into ethereal sweetness on it’s second track allowing a breath of air. But, as soon as you feel lulled into comfort, he dives headlong into anguish and thrash again. 

If this sounds jarring, you need to give it a listen, as it’s handled beautifully and serves as a great introduction to a story that Hutchison is telling.

This instrumental project has seen 2 Eps and 3 full length albums, each of which has it’s own emotional flow and unique approach. (ChaoticState in particular delving into some very cool synth work.) I say all this because I want to preface how excited I was to listen to his most recent work, “Silhouettes and Strange Shapes”. I went in with high hopes and Hutch didn’t disappoint.

I always try to decide the best place someone could listen to a record. Some beg to be heard while driving empty streets late in the evening, others are party jams meant to be shared with friends. This record begs to be listened to with good headphones on a comfortable couch with a  well-made cocktail at hand. 

There’s a dreamlike quality to the production that will spin around in your brain as the story unfolds. Take a sip of your manhattan at the 1:30 mark of “A Separate Peace”, just before the lead line grows quicker, and tell me you don’t get what this guy is doing.

My personal favorite track is actually the opener “They Walk”. It’s discordant nature hits the jazz elements I so much enjoyed in my early twenties, sipping cheap scotch out of coffee mugs and listening to vinyl with my best friend. It’s nostalgic and hopeful, and more than that, it works so well as a lead-in to the second track.

I highly encourage you to give this guy a shot, and I would even recommend starting with the earlier work, then moving towards this most recent release, as I feel like the growth of this project is a large part of what makes it special. Check it out, and let me know what you’re drinking. Thanks Hutch.