Transient Thoughts 016 - Tonebox - Cloud Highway

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Duality - the existence of two entities that are fated to be joined together for all eternity.  Light and dark, life and death, silence and sound - without one the other would not exist.  This paradox is ever present in nature and civilization, and it is truly a fascinating phenomenon to ponder.  

Duality also exists within music.  Be it two contrasting styles or tendencies that compliment each other while still remaining completely different in their execution.  It is this very paradox that exists within Tonebox’s album Cloud Highway.
 
There are two sides to Cloud highwavy: the first offers a very satisfying, yet entirely typical rendition of synthwave.  The second however is where this album differentiates itself from many of its contemporaries.  Tonebox has added darksynth into the core of their sound with excellent results.

The bass on this album is immense, powerful and used in exactly the right amount.  The opener - Run -  consists of a simple backbeat, and insane bass lines that are typical of darksynth.   Words can not do this song justice, it's something that must be experienced.  If I were to simply read that description in my own time it would be an automatic pass.  However, experiencing the song is something on a completely different level.

Ontop the colossal bass and percussion there are layered minimalist melodies.  These melodies take several seconds to fully develop and decay giving them a truly vast feeling. Everything here feels expansive - every note, every melody, every effect is used to maximum effect.

Songs like Run, Shock and Radium buried between the more typical synthwave tracks bring out the album's true character.  It has a cadence that makes the album flow and evolve effortlessly.  Each style is essential to the identity of Cloud Highway, for without the synthwave or the darksynth the album would be incomplete.  It's by their combination that the album reaches its true potential, just as so many other dualities found within our world.

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