Bill Wren begins his latest album Road to Chiang Mai with a hopeful, inspiring composition. Enchanted Kingdom (feat. Frank Ralls) possesses a wonderful dichotomy of new and old, organic and electronic, that makes for a wholly engrossing track that will have listeners on the edges of their seats. The narrative quality of this instrumental composition is as rich and intricate as vocal-lead bands with the added benefit of allowing each note to shine through without any introduction.
The Other Side (feat. Aubrey Logan) immediately begins with a quick tempo; the inclusion of a voice here spins things in a wholly new direction than Enchanted Kingdom. By the time that this effort ends, fans will have little indication of the journey that still awaits.
Ponder Dust (feat. Ann Marie Calhoun) rises upon beautiful strings and a deep backing instrumentation. Deftly tying together contrasting elements, Wren ensures that listeners will gain more each time that they play the track. The levels at which one can enjoy the tracks on Road to Chiang Mai are numerous; one can have the music playing in the background and be lifted by each composition or they can strap on a pair of headphones and examine the collaboration between the numerous elements that are presented during the album.
Road to Chiang Mai (feat. Micah Gilliam) does a tremendous job telling a story; one can imagine the travails that await them in the traditional locale. The scintillating set of styles broached during this track provide further fleshing out of the road metaphor, while Journey Around the Sun (feat. Frank Ralls) has listeners move from a mundane setting to the celestial. Wren is able to bundle a wide array of styles and approaches to great effect in Road to Chiang Mai.
Top Tracks: Road to Chiang Mai, Enchanted Kingdom
Rating: 8.5/10
Bill Wren – Road to Chiang Mai / 2016 Self-Released / 13 Tracks / http://billwrenmusic.com/ / https://www.facebook.com/billwrenmusic
John Sargeant, writing on NeuFutur as Sargeant, is the founder and editor-in-chief of NeuFutur Magazine, where he has covered independent music, PC hardware, consumer tech, and gaming culture since 1998. With over 25 years of continuous digital publishing experience, he has written thousands of hands-on game and record reviews, conducted in-depth hardware field testing, and analyzed digital media monetization trends. His work prioritizes first-hand evaluation and long-term product testing.
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