Peacecraft - Songs For When The World Ends

Review by Karl Magi

Overall Album Impressions

Peacecraft’s Songs For When The World Ends is full of vulnerability, fragility and melancholy that is shot through with brighter and more positive emotional threads. It is lofi music with a great deal of sensitivity and musical quality. I find that it takes me on an expressive musical journey as the album unfolds.

Songs For When The World Ends showcases Peacecraft’s piano performances and overall compositional skills. He plays with a great deal of feeling and it shines through, even with the lo fi sound profile. Peacecraft has written pieces that bare his emotional soul and fill the listener with deep sensations. I feel very connected to his music for that reason.

Atmosphere absolutely drenches Songs For When The World Ends. The wavering, trembling and distorted sounds add an element of uncertainty and tentative feeling. The delicate piano often radiates melancholy and loss, while the resonant strings and synth accents deepen the overall ache in the music. I also find the moments of light glow more in contrast to the elegiac sensations on the album.

Peacecraft also resists the temptation that some lofi producers seem to fall into to phone in the music. I feel that he’s always engaged in crafting music that touches the soul and is of great quality. I can sense that this project is important to him and of enough emotional significance that he pours himself into each note.

I also want to add that Jacket’s production on the album allows Peacecraft’s full musical expression to be realized. He captures the overall emotional tenor of the music and his production choices help showcase all of its qualities.

My Favourite Tracks Analyzed

“And We Move On” opens with slightly distant and fuzzy piano chords wavering along wth the sound of rain pouring and a steady pulse of distant drums. The piano melody has a vulnerable fragility to it that touches me deeply.

Clapping percussion moves as the rain washes through the music with a gentle splashing. There’s something hopeful in the soft piano melody while the left hand creates shadow along with more tragic emotion. Ticking percussion moves before a wind drifts through and the song ends on the rain falling.

A fuzzed out crackling sound fills the track as a gleaming piano shifts in ethereal lines to start “Distant Memories.” A slow arpeggio spins and minor key shadings add a vaguely ominous quality. Something pained shades into triumph in the music as far away arpeggios turn.

The piano is airy and throbbing bass and steady percussion effectively add contrasting weight. The main piano melody has an aching emotional core as bell like sounds twine through the music.

A steady bass rumble underpins the track while the dense piano chords undulate with darkness oozing from them. The hurting, slightly broken piano melody is touched by a soft crackle that adds a slightly unsettled feeling. Hollow digital sounds float in the distance before the track ends.

“Solemn Contemplation” begins as distant rain again flows and muffled, hollow drums keep throbbing to shape the music. Melancholy synth notes move with a lugubrious feeling above extremely low frequency bass.

Open chimes ring out with a slightly metallic quality and flows into the music. The chimes feel uncertain along with their feathery, breathy quality. Bass slips below an even synth tone that wavers above aching, slowly shifting chords.

Rumbling bass shifts and chimes carry a tentative melody with a charmingly wistful feeling. The drums have a very light touch as the tender piano sings out. Bass darkness underpins the piano’s gentle pain and caressing feeling before we end.

Shimmering piano spins out in arpeggiating notes along with resonant, string-like sound to commence “Life In Happiness.” Trembling, buzzing notes are joined by rich strings as high piano flickers.

I enjoy the way in which the string section adds lush depth and mournful emotion. Trembling sounds wrap around the main piano melody’s dreaming ache to it that tugs at the heartstrings. Chimes twinkle while dense bass rumbles and a rippling sonic cascade tumbles down through the track.

Warmth pours from the strings and tinges the music with majestic feeling. There is a memory of happiness here, rather than the more immediate experience of it. Above the other elements, elevated chimes undulate while the strings add a gentler emotional layer.

“Time To Wake Up” comes to life as air rustles and bending synth carries tentative and delicate notes. Metallic, tapping percussion echoes into open space along with nature’s breathing life. The melody has a rather uncertain and hesitant quality that I find deeply touching.

Hollow, pipe-like synth undulates through the music as solid drums throb and skip while birds sing. Hollow pipes ripple and wavering, bright synth carries a hesitating melody while skipping drums guide the music. Gleaming synth distorts as the melody becomes more tentative before natural sounds end the track.

Wide-sounding, descending synths shift through a shivering, glittering background to open “Wake of Tranquility.” Drums snap and tick to guide the track. Piano moves with mournful and shaded chords while a mid-range sonic vibration wavers.

A repeating piano figure sparkles beautifully as strings twang and ripple while drums pop and static crackles. Bass flows in a river as strings vibrate out in powerful chords. Elevated synth rises over top as the rich piano chords also move through. Higher notes keep climbing and now metallic strings call out while the tender piano flits through with heavier chords below.

“I Think I Think Too Much” starts off as flowing air underpins a piano melody that hurts but also dreams as drums scud along to provide motion. Uplifting emotion radiates from the piano melody as it unfolds, surrounded by swirling sound.

The piano conveys wonderful optimism as it glides along and twinkling sonic stars shine above it. The piano slips through the music, carrying the caressing melody through and out into silence.

Static sounds fizz and a lost, distorted piano wanders as "Is This The Future?” opens. Confident chords ring out before echoing, slowly shifting drums shape the music. Brittle, muffled piano cries out mingling hope and loss above low bass underneath ticking drums. The piano’s soothing emotional tenor is affecting for me.

The main melody contains a little hurt that is leavened by more positive and encouraging emotional content. Floating, far-off piano leaps and dances as Peacecraft demonstrates his skill.

The beat keeps pulsing as light flickers from the piano’s keys and steady, ticking drums throb. An element of triumph from the piano is reflected in the strong left hand part. The track ends on fragile piano and slight static crackle.

Conclusion

Songs For When the World Ends is lofi music with real heart and soul. Peacecraft has gone above and beyond to make music that is plain good, regardless of what genre label it is given. I am moved and touched each time I listen to this album.