Byrne Elliott Music’s “Age of Enlightenment” is one of the most engrossing instrumental albums that we have had the chance to cover over the last few years. The brightness of the composition invites fans in, and the constantly-shifting arrangements present on the song are enough to ensure that one is captive for the subsequent tracks on the album. Immediately obvious to us is the ability of BEM to creative a narrative element to the tracks on the album. Even after the initial song ends, one has a good idea about his inspiration and the goals that he seeks to achieve by the end of this new release.
The titular track Age of Enlightenment has a sweeping sound to it that both calls back to mid-20th century musical scores and the more “new age” sound of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Sunlight starts out with twinkling pianos and keys that mesh to make for a cohesive track. There’s so much present to this track as the drums briefly enter into the composition that one will really have to play Sunlight again to hear how each of the constituent elements interact with each other. Byrne Elliott Music reach another high with Age of Enlightenment’s third track, Calamity. Calamity starts off with a quicker tempo and has a dark, richer emotional content to it. There are martial elements here, and one will undoubtedly sense that there is some mission to complete, some goal to achieve by the unnamed entity that is captured here.
La Seconda Venuta Di Cristo has a choral, heavenly sound to its introduction that feels timeless, especially for those individuals that spent their formative years regularly attending a place of worship. The strings represent the grounding element on the track. When thinking about what the effort represents in the grander scheme of Byrne Elliott Music’s Age of Enlightenment, I would content that it showcases the role of religion in fostering some of the steps forward that humanity took. Olympic Destiny is whimsical and acts as a palette refresher for fans that are continuing on to Age of Enlightenment’s second half. American Revolution has all of the pomp and circumstance of what has popularly been captured in movies about our founders’ fight for liberty. The electronic, vocal-like segments provide a bit of contemporary sound to the tried-and-true drum line sound.
Hope for the Hopeless is one of our favorite works on this album as it covers so much distance over the course of the work’s 2 minute run time. The gradual tempo increase is married to different elements entering into the mix, with a decided break to a more pensive sort of sound as the composition gradually winds to its close. What is most interesting about Haunted Love is how dreamy the general body of the track is. Perhaps this is more along the line of a “love which cannot be”. Age of Enlightenment’s final two tracks – Lessons Never Learned and Dance of Life – do well to gradually and organically end the album. Of all of the works on this album, Lessons Never Learned is the one that would be most approachable for individuals of popular music. The song takes inspiration from mid-1970s singer-songwriter acts like The Carpenters, Air Supply, and John Denver. While the presence of vocals on the track would break the cohesion of the rest of Age of Enlightenment, their presence would ensure that Lessons Never Learned would be placed on a 1970s-styled radio station or Spotify playlist. Dance of Life is wistful and will be emotionally effecting for those that know that things are winding down. There’s no slackening of the composition, no sense that BEM has put this in the last slot – it is easily the equivalent quality of any of the other works on this album.
Here’s to hoping that Byrne Elliott Music continues to release music of the same high caliber. Age of Enlightenment is one of those albums that you could easily put on and complete whatever chores or activities, but contains much for those that really like focusing on in to music to examine its nuance. A solid album all around.
Top Tracks:Age of Enlightenment, La Seconda Venuta Di Cristo, Hope for the Hopeless, Dance of Life
Rating: 9.0/10
If you have had a chance to listen to Age of Enlightenment, leave a comment. For additional information about the performer, check out their Youtube.
Byrne Elliott Music – “Age of Enlightenment” Album Review / 2025 Self Released / 10 songs / 29:52 / Youtube / Amazon
