From A Harbour Softly Drawn – Shepherds – Album Review
by Killian Laher

This is the first full-length album from Fraser McGowan’s new project and first album in seven years.  Having previously alternated folky, song-based material with more ambient work, he has focused on the latter on this album.  The opening track, Morning Waters, is complex and expansive, with a synth loop, synthetic strings, saxophone, and whispered voices, giving it a beguiling effect.  Yillen is a brief interlude, very zen with keyboard, snatched sounds and female wordless vocals.

The keyboard piece Lavender & Blue Thread has lovely, clean guitar lines.  Rhu Aun is an odd-sounding track, field sounds combined with saxophone before the track shuts off, replaced by some melodic strings.  Some eerie water sounds introduce the keyboard-based Seaweed, possibly the most accessible piece here.

The album finishes with the lengthy Feels Like Coming Home, a drone-based piece with indistinct voices and weather sounds which resolves into some hypnotic electronic loops.  One of the more interesting albums in the ambient sphere.  It’s available here: https://dronarivm.bandcamp.com/album/shepherds