the mystic
$ 20.00
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Listen to the song "Belly"
Bells Atlas’ latest offering the mystic digs further into their soulful buoyancy to explore both sound and storytelling. Sandra Lawson-Ndu, Douglas Stuart, Geneva Harrison, and Derek Barber stumbled upon a new, more production-oriented process for songwriting-- which included sampling grainy phone recordings-- that elevates Bells Atlas’ already unique approach to psychedelic R&B. The spontaneity of the mystic’s creative process results in a raw, cosmic sound that is mirrored in its lyrics. The record can be seen as sci-fi fantasy of two first-generation Nigerian American women coming to terms with a mental health diagnosis, and at the same time, a very universal exploration of how we make sense of reality. “It’s about a truth seer and a skeptic trying to make sense of what’s mystical and what’s clinical,” frontwoman Sandra Lawson-Ndu says. The listener is made to consider the possibility of magic. Is it possible, for instance, that someone who navigates the world differently may have a deeper understanding of the universe? The mystic is a spectrum of deep emotionality, impulse, and even humour; a tool to explore the full dimension of our reality.
TLE-082 (2019) - 1. Hazelwood
2. Rogue Dream
3. The Khamsa
4. We've Been Here Before
5. Belly
6. Downpour
7. The Mystic
8. First Gen Pisces
9. Na Change / See Clear
10. Final Ceiling -
Bells Atlas’ latest offering the mystic digs further into their soulful buoyancy to explore both sound and storytelling. Sandra Lawson-Ndu, Douglas Stuart, Geneva Harrison, and Derek Barber stumbled upon a new, more production-oriented process for songwriting-- which included sampling grainy phone recordings-- that elevates Bells Atlas’ already unique approach to psychedelic R&B. The spontaneity of the mystic’s creative process results in a raw, cosmic sound that is mirrored in its lyrics. The record can be seen as sci-fi fantasy of two first-generation Nigerian American women coming to terms with a mental health diagnosis, and at the same time, a very universal exploration of how we make sense of reality. “It’s about a truth seer and a skeptic trying to make sense of what’s mystical and what’s clinical,” frontwoman Sandra Lawson-Ndu says. The listener is made to consider the possibility of magic. Is it possible, for instance, that someone who navigates the world differently may have a deeper understanding of the universe? The mystic is a spectrum of deep emotionality, impulse, and even humour; a tool to explore the full dimension of our reality.
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Soulful noise pop, inspired, propellent psych pop… Trying to nail down the sound of Bells Atlas is a bit like narrating the inner workings of a kaleidoscope – where it's more about tripping out than nailing it down.
TLE-080 (2018) - 1. Overshare
2. Downpour
3. I Do Remain
4. The Mystic -
A surreal blend of r&b, psychedelia, jazz, and pop, rooted in the cultural bellwether of Oakland, CA, Bells Atlas has supported a number of international artists and shared the stage with acts such as Hiatus Kaiyote, Badbadnotgood, Bilal, Meshell Ndegeocello, W. Kamau Bell, Angélique Kidjo and more. They have also been making a name for themselves nationally as the touring band for NPR’s Snap Judgment since 2016, and recently wrapped up a sold-out tour supporting Bermuda Triangle, side-project of Alabama Shakes lead singer Brittany Howard. Channeling at once the ramshackle lo-fi beats of Tune-Yards and the sighing lullabies of Sade, Bells is like the passing bubbles of an unknown aquatic life-form, music percolates from depths untaken, playing in a deep blue pool of life, death and the fluid in-between.