Instrumental New Age-Chill-Classical Review: Richard Dillon-Terra Incognito-The Space Between Us

Release Date: February 14, 2018

Label: Independent

Website

Before settling in and taking in Terra Incognito-The Space Between Us, I thought about the three albums I had the pleasure of covering last year.  I got to know Richard through Ring Around The Moon, Irish Mist and The Land of Nod Lullabies for the Listless. There is a saying…familiarity breeds contempt, in this that could not be further from the truth. Having a comfort zone before I started made it even easier for me to get into my mindset for listening.

Although I do have that zone with Richard’s music, I certainly never know what to expect from him one album to the next. The only realistic expectation I have is that his music will be a great experience from start to finish.

Terra Incognito is unfamiliar territory, a new path or journey one is experiencing. A similar term, Terra Incognita, is in reference to territories that have not be mapped. To put it in layman’s terms, this is the unknown. Like Captain Kirk and his crew aboard the starship enterprise, we embark upon a journey with wonder and excitement, with no prior knowledge of what will come our way.

Terra Incognito-The Space Between Us is everything that I just discussed. Such diversity presented so well deserves a hearty salute and tip of the cap. Richard manages to record 24 tracks and some redux’s with an energy and grace that comes flowing through the music like a steady running stream. 

The colors are changing all the time on this recording. From track to track you just do not know what is coming next. It is like having Christmas at your own private music shop and Richard is the sole proprietor. The reason this recording is so eclectic is that it takes past recordings and weaves them together to encompass orchestration and licensing going back to 1984 all the way to present day.

It is music for movies, documentaries, commercials, just about anything you can imagine. Instrumental music is much more flexible when it comes to using it for various media purposes. I really appreciated the ground covered musically and the titles range from “In Search of Chocolate” to “Leonardo’s Flying Machine.” There is no connection whatsoever with those two tracks but yet they find a home here in this collection.

Terra Incognito-The Space Between Us unites us as listeners and human beings even though it is unchartered territory, our similarities and the world around us is what makes us one planet and one people. It is like taking a “Light of Peace” to heal us and help us to grow in many ways. The universal healer and language of music once again can be the answer.

5/5 Stars

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

April 5, 2018

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Tracks:
01. Whalesong (Redux)
02. Green Flash (Redux)
03. The Space Between
04. Dust Devil
05. Ice Dancer (Redux)
06. Color Me
07. In Search of Chocolate
08. Leonardo's Flying Machine
09. Beside Still Waters (Redux)
10. Papillon (Redux)
11. Lead Kindly Night
12. It's All Right (Redux)
13. Cars
14. Voyager
15. Into the Mines
16. He Leadeth Me Beside Still Waters (Redux)
17. A Different Time a Different Place (Redux)
18. Light of Peace (Redux)
19. Goodbye for Now
20. Sea of Forgetfulness
21. Ha Long Bay
22. Missing You
23. January Moon (Redux)
24. I Could Care Less

New Age Instrumental Review: Richard Dillon-Irish Mist

Release Date: July 11, 2017

Label: Independent

Website

My introduction to Richard Dillon was the 2014 release The Land of Nod and Lullabies for The Listless. I covered it in April of this year and I did not expect to have another opportunity to hear this music so soon. I of course welcome that experience.

Irish Mist is contemporary new age instrumental with a Celtic theme weaved in the fabric of its musical output. Richard plays elegantly and with an underlying current of passion that is recognized by this listener. You would never recognize that when you just “hear” the music however there is more to it. The music carries with it emotional substance and purpose. Without words, it steadily enters your consciousness and travels to the heart and then into your soul.

Inside the music are stories interpreted through this talented man’s fingers. The most prolific example is the life and times of an Irish immigrant toiling away “Into the Mines” to feed his family. The song echoes of the past and the violin enters the track almost weeping, asking for relief as the ivory keys beckon it again and again. The song bends your heart strings as you envision the hard and dangerous work of men in the mines. 

This is the kind of picturesque movie that flickers inside your head while you listening to a tale that comes alive in the music. That is not an easy thing to accomplish, and to do it with such impact and feeling is what makes it so real. That is what great music should do, move you, push you to a state of consciousness and introspection. A place that cannot be reached when laser focused by your work or by the events of a day.

Call it what you will - new age, instrumental, contemporary, classical or meditation, this is chicken soup for the soul music. If you have the inkling or the need to listen to something spiritual and relaxing and soothing, well then, this is your ticket to all those moods in one sitting. 

Irish Mist intersects with culture, history and the psyche of a human mind and then sets it free. 

4/5 Stars

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

August 21, 2017

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Tracks: 
01. Irish Mist
02. Mother Ireland
03. Smiles
04. My Bed Is a Boat
05. Shadows on the Wall
06. Freckles
07. Dancing on the Light
08. Dying of the Light
09. A Different Time a Different Place
10. Skye Boat
11. Into the Mines
12. Wild Mountain Thyme
13. Mother's Eyes
14. The Long Goodbye
15. Deidres Dance

New Age/Contemporary Instrumental Review: Richard Dillon-The Land of Nod Lullabies for the Listless

Release Date: March 17, 2014

Label: Independent

Website

Richard Dillon is a firmly established artist with 8 previous recordings behind him. The Land of Nod Lullabies for the Listless was my introduction to his solo piano journeys.

Piano music is one of the most relaxing and mind emptying music I know of. I am the type of listener that is open to hearing just about anything. A lot of what I enjoy is very complex however on the other end of the spectrum I have a tremendous love for simplicity and pure beauty.

What I discovered on The Land of Nod Lullabies for the Listless is everything I enjoy about an instrumental new age/contemporary listening experience. The pace and approach is gentle yet inviting. It kind of feels like you are in slow motion falling into a bed of feathers or floating on a cloud. You can visualize these things just as you start listening and it’s not hard to make it all real with the help of this beautiful guide we call music. This can be your own “Chicken Soup for The Soul,” or your “Chop wood, gather water” kind of outdoor spiritual connection that the people who founded this great land of ours had.

As the title indicates this can be directed at children and adults alike. Regardless of age, we all do respond to colors, aromas and sounds. I think music has the power to create different experiences for the senses and it can be used for meditating or just to have on for some nice background music because it does not demand your attention or sound intrusive, it puts you at ease and relieves tensions. There are all sorts of therapies and drugs out there for relief of many problems and ailments but the one thing that remains more powerful than them all is music.

When I listen to music like The Land of Nod Lullabies for the Listless I am inspired to write about all these thoughts and feelings that the music helps me to realize. It is engaging as a lively conversation, although it is best to have it on an internal and spiritual level if you need healing. I am far from being listless but if you are this music will remove that condition in relatively short period.

One track seamlessly flows into the next like water from the roots of a tree to the leaves, bringing life and color to them all. Unequivocally music can have the same effects and meaning to a listener ready to receive it.

The Land of Nod Lullabies for the Listless is unencumbered art in motion, it is one man and a piano bringing these beautiful sounds to life with keystrokes that are channeled through him. I am continually amazed at these gifted individuals that bring me such peace and joy. This is musical perfection; a once empty canvas is now full for all to enjoy.

5/5 Stars

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

April 11, 2017

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Tracks:
01. The Land Above the Sky
02. No More Tears
03. Jouet Triste (Sad Toy)
04. Rocking Chair
05. Kainehe (Whispering Sea, Rumbling Sea)
06. Marmalade Skies
07. Sea of Forgetfulness
08. La Luna (The Moon)
09. Looking Glass River
10. My Bed is a Boat
11. Shadows on the Wall
12. Papillon (Butterfly)
13. The Land of Nod
14. Moonrise
15. Sleepyhead