009 - Kagami Smile - Opaque Lens World

 

Opaque Lens World is the story about an individual who finds them self in the midst of conflict, longing, searching, finding, and ultimately defeated.  When listening to this album I was taken to a world where I was swept away with a myriad of emotions ranging form intrigue, hope, and discouragement.  As I went on my journey, I found myself hoping that the protagonist would find what they were so desperately searching for but in the end there was nothing.  At the end I was left questioning what the point of everything was and left with a feeling of hollowness in my core.

Opaque Lens World (OLW) is the story of an individual who finds themselves in the midst of conflict, struggle, hope, defiance, assimilation, and ultimately triumph.  When listening to this epic I was swept away to a world where life and existence are a continual struggle.  The first half of the album is a consistent struggle against an unknown entity that persistently vies for dominance over what little sanity is left. Only after the halfway point of the album is there a sense of determination and perhaps even hope.  The album ends with an anthem that celebrates what one can accomplish through the adversity of life.

One album, two of infinite interpretations of the world that Kagami Smile has put in front of us.  During my multiple listens, I created the first narrative.  The narrative tone of the album seemingly directed the protagonist down a path of futility.  

The second interpretation came after a simple exchange with Kagami.  I noted that I felt the album ended on a sombre and futile tone.  He had the opposite interpretation, he thought that it conveyed a tone of triumph.  I went back to listen to the album with the tonal shift at the end in mind and the second narrative took shape.  Neither is correct, neither is wrong.  That is the beauty of this album.  

Kagami demands much of his listeners.  There is little in the way of traditional music on this release, most of it being purely ambient tones, noises, and minimal beats.  Each of these elements intertwine and dance with each other.  The results range from strange beauty to odd inhumanity.  

This is entirely intentional. Kagami states, “I believe simplicity can achieve more detail and force the creator to think and work in ways he or she wouldn’t normally,” preferring minimalism to grandiose composition, never using  more than 3-4 tracks to create an entire composition. All of the music that Kagami creates is recorded live, in one take.  “I just hit record and let the sounds guide themselves.”  In doing this, he assumes the same role as everyone else: the listener.

OLW’s compositions are slow to reveal their true character.  Each track, save for a few minutes of Myth of Silence, contains a dominant tone.  This tone can either be a single note sustained over the course of the track or it can also be a slowly repeating progression of notes that should sound musical but somehow end up remaining outside of the realm of traditional music.  No matter the form, these tones demand attention and drive the compositions.

Where Kagami takes these tones is where his mastery of the ambient art shines through.  Refractive Dream takes this idea and creates an eerie tone where nothing seems quite right.  Dead Rave, the very next track, takes the same basic structure and creates a sense of struggle between two dominating forces.  Swimming Beside A Mass Consciousness takes the minimalism and gives the listener a first glimpse of humanity and warmth.  Each song in its own way takes the principles established early in the album and completely redefines how they are used.  

The only exception to this is the closing track, Myth of Silence.  Where there was a stillness there is now activity.  Where there was once subtlety, there is now definition.  Throughout the album each composition has taken concepts developed earlier and expanded upon them, morphed them into something new.  Myth of Silence furthers this by taking the staples established by all the tracks prior and turning them on their head.  It is a strong statement and a fitting way to close the record.

Opaque Lens World is the story about a listener who takes the music that Kagami Smile has created and forges it into their own as the album washes through them.  What Kagami has created is a canvas.  One that the observer is free to fill in with their own interpretations and visions of the world he has created.  

Acknowledgements

Thank you very much Kagami Smile for taking the time to talk about this album and a plethora of all things ambient, music composition, and life in general.  As always, thank you to Blissmonkey for your promotion and editing.