Peter Gagliardi - Journey to Pluto

Review by Karl Magi

Overall Album Impressions

Peter Gagliardi’s Journey to Pluto is a beautifully orchestral, cinematically sweeping album that captures all of the mystery and majesty of that enigmatic celestial body. He draws the listener along with supremely well-composed melodies, haunting instrumental choices and a richly atmospheric feeling that conveys us on this journey to Pluto. I enjoy the blend of classical elements with synthesizers, effectively painting powerful imagery as the album unfolds.

After having reviewed several of Peter Gagliardi’s albums, I can confidently say that Journey to Pluto in particular showcases his skills with more classical sounds. His use of oboe, cello, piano and strings captures all of the nobility and darkness inherent in outer space. He interweaves these more organic sounds with synthesized tones and textures to broaden his canvas and create more compelling vistas through this instrumental depth.

I can say that the melodies Peter Gagliardi has written on Journey to Pluto are some of his best so far. The way in which he captures emotion, ranging from tenderness to triumph, is superb as his melodies unfold. Each piece has an engaging ability to pull me into it and Peter Gagliardi writes in a way that allows me to personally engage with the emotional content of the tracks. I find these melodies memorable and impactful.

The way in which Peter Gagliardi composes on Journey to Pluto allows me to visualize each step of this journey upon which he takes us. I am buoyed up by the sense of flying past vast cosmic structures and circling Pluto in orbit, looking down at that mysterious surface, pondering its secrets. The overall effect is one of the sublime—both beautiful and terrible at the same time.

My Favourite Tracks Analyzed

"Edge of the Solar System" comes into being as massive bass creates deep vibrations and a steadily gliding synth wanders out above it. Tiny bright notes shine delicately into the gruff bass and become a delicately drifting pattern as they move. The colossal bass forms a cosmic tide as the tentatively touching notes glimmer. A steadily undulating synth pattern creates a wave that floats outward. Tightly wound, guitar-like notes pluck as shimmering synth twinkles like a faraway galaxy.

Rounded notes swell and wander off into the distance as the string-like synth begins to form a steady pulse. Echoing, glistening notes playing through the music carry me away into a state of meditation and contemplative silence. The brighter sounds evoke a starfield glittering in the velvet blackness of endless space, while the bass gives space to exhale and let the tension go.

A broader synth pierces the music with more intense luminosity, wandering out as the bass pulse continues and the plucking string sound adds a hint of tension. Slowly drifting notes trail through the track above the colossal weight below and a warm sound closes the track out.

A worshipful choir calls out as deep bass rumbles to begin "Cold Beauty". A hushed crackling sound moves in the distance as the blessed voices drift past in a serene tide. The track grows in strength as the voices continue to call out, slipping past in a peaceful line. Strings touch the music as piano carries a trembling and affecting melody, tinged with pain, while a fluting synth carries a second melodic line that speaks of journeys across unfathomable distances.

The cello’s dark tones fill the music, which I find intensely moving and full of overwhelming feelings, making my heart ache. The cello melody takes a minor-key turn as the bass begins to pulsate in a smooth motion and the choir calls out. Melancholy shadings fill the track as the strings and choir are underpinned by the steady piano. Tragedy radiates from the strings as a pipe organ moves in the distance.

The cello and flute-like instrument intertwine in a touching duet, carrying out intense sensations of need and gentleness. As the cello turns into minor-key notes, the sorrow pierces me and I feel carried on its tide before the song fades into silence.

"Journey to Pluto I: Hydra" starts as portentous bass flows and a soft crackle shifts. A single, raised note becomes a slowly unfurling melody, haunting and lost, supported by an oboe. The bass continues to slip and the distant crackling adds texture while the ethereal woodwinds are joined by a delicately moving piano, carrying a minor-key melody that adds an enigmatic sensation.

The bass begins to create an undulating pattern as a single sound floats. Gigantic, martial drums begin to batter as the choir expresses gossamer, pained emotion and the piano carries a spectrally shadowed melody. Drums and low brass add immense drama and the choir creates a feeling of approaching danger. I am enamored by the cinematic scale and incredible power exuded by the low end.

Hollow-sounding notes roam and the richly glowing synth has a bell-like quality, carrying a caressing melody before the low brass growls and flickering notes intertwine. The bass keeps rushing forward before the piano carries a fragile, frightened melody through the music. The mixture of weight and breakable sounds creates an engaging contrast before the song ends on the choir falling silent.

A trickling piano floats out into vastness as the metallic sounds in the distance shift to open "Journey to Pluto II: Kerberos." Warmer notes move along with ghostly minor-key chimes as the bass begins to pulsate and a single, huge drum pulses. The sparkling notes in the distance rapidly flit by as laser-like sounds cut in, carrying a melody that speaks of danger and adventure. The drums and bass form a solid wall, while the glimmering synth, with its rough edges, adds a powerful feeling.

Metallic sounds hiss as the broad-sounding, majestic synth carries the timeless and moving melody. There's a dreamy and diaphanous quality here that I find enjoyable as the main melody unfolds. Computerized notes tumble tensely in a flashing line, churning and bending, as the percussion and bass shudder onward. Uncomfortable sensations touch the music before the track moves to a more delicate segment, with chimes flickering and calling out with tenderness. The piano's minor-key sound adds a twilit quality as the bass rumbles.

“Journey to Pluto III: Nix” commences as an ominous flow moves behind the richness of an oboe and the softly touching strings that move tentatively in the distance. The low end contains a hint of threat as the oboe breathes out. The bass adds dense mass as the background crackles and the oboe's beautifully shadowed voice delicately shifts. The bass becomes a colossal pulse as lonely piano notes flow outward into the vastness looming around them.

Strings add a lustrous luminosity as reverent choral voices fill the distance with a growing glow and the enormous bass continues to throb. The oboe's tremulous voice carries a melody that touches me with isolation and a sense of loss. The wordless vocals are in a minor key and full of tragic feeling, while a harp evokes timeless astral sensations, moving in slowly shifting arpeggios as the bass heaves below. Lushly shaded vocals move above the vibrating background with an engaging feeling before the track ends on a nervously echoing piano.

A softly descending piano moves above bass that swells and fills the background to start “Journey to Pluto IV: Styx”. As the piano climbs and descends, it gives off tranquil sensations, tinged by a hint of shadow. In the distance, the oboe and strings add glinting hints of starlight, while the piano fills me with a sense of lightness and the feeling of weightless flight.

The choir grows in the distance, adding another sort of scintillating light to the proceedings as the strings intertwine and fan out, while the piano sparkles and flits through the music with a bird-like delicacy. The piano spins out in an energetic line as echoing percussion taps in the distance. The piano flutters as the tapping percussion increases in strength, echoing outward.

A slicing synth with an intense sheen jumps into the music, twirling and cavorting with abandon. The oboe moves in the distance with woodsy depth as the piano reaches out to touch my heart with its trembling calm before the choir ends the track.

“Journey to Pluto V: Charon” starts with a brief choral burst before vast bass moves in a gigantic flow, accompanied by a heavily thumping kick drum. Rising brilliance pours from distantly glistening synthesizers and the low end becomes a percussive heartbeat. Rippling notes drift outward as a tin whistle carries a timeless, folklike melody, expressing ancient feelings that contrast with the twinkling synthesizer. The pounding drums and bass drive the music forward.

An astral radiance emanates from the synthesizer that hangs in the background as a lusciously full sound moves, interweaving with the marimba while the piano adds texture. The drums grow in power again as the spaced-out synthesizer skims over the battering low end and angular notes that trip through the music. Now, a steadily shining sound moves in again and the intensely affecting tin whistle cries out, expressing a feeling of spiritual energy that I am drawn to.

The cello winds through the music with a melody that is deeply reverberant and aches with melancholy. Chimes sparkle in the distance as the cello weaves its mournful tones above the gigantic low end, while a haunting sound emerges on a violin, expressing a depth of feeling. Rippling notes close the track out.

Colossal percussion erupts as the strings twine out in a lively line and a clarinet carries a wandering minor-key melody above the swelling bass to commence “Journey to Pluto VI: God of the Underworld.” The strings intertwine and cymbals crash before the emotive cello winds through, accompanied by clanking, clattering percussion.

There’s a military throb to the underlying drumbeat as metallic sounds ring out and lush strings vibrate. The cello is expressive and powerful as the steady vocal sound echoes in the distance and the bass rumbles. Cymbals burst again and hard-hitting drums thud into the music as the choir adds an ominous note.

Flickering sounds carried on a slowly turning piano move above the darker shadings below. The track has a smooth flow as a richly unwinding bass sound moves and static crackles. The track slips into a tranquil, feather-light segment before the piano slowly undulates and a sparkling synthesizer with a string-like quality rapidly arpeggiates.

Brass adds massive drama and a snare drum clatters with martial precision. All of the strings intertwine as they float and the brass cries out with intensity and flashing power. I feel the surging energy within me as this piece unfolds. The oboe cries out again as the metallic sounds ring and the vocal sound howls before the wandering piano slowly fades, leaving silence to settle over the track with a deep weight as it ends.

“A Million Hearts” begins with Stygian bass shifting below sweeping sounds. The bass has a tidal flow to it as it spreads outward and slowly falls into silence. Now the piano takes up a melody that combines gentleness, elegance and a caring, cradling feeling. The piano continues to drift with precise grace and the strings behind it move with affection.

Chimes flicker and the piano creates a misty bed for the music as the bass rumbles and the drums touch smoothly. Luminance fills the background as the piano calls out and a choral synthesizer creates the impression of voices climbing skyward in the distance. The piano carries heartbreaking emotion in contrast to the looming power below it.

The drums add a guiding pulsation as the piano slips past. The music's touching quality draws me in. The piano moves alone before the colossal bass continues to move and shift. A trembling sound moves distantly as the piano slides through the music with simple beauty. The astral power of the low end imbues the music with a feeling of space flight before the track comes to an end.

Conclusion

Journey to Pluto is one of Peter Gagliardi’s best works, in my opinion. It has an evocative nature and instrumental beauty that set it apart. It’s the sort of work I'd love to hear fully orchestrated and performed by a symphony to bring out the full lusciousness and emotion with which it is imbued.