Review Summary: An amazingly sentimental album that will make you nostalgic for memories you never actually had.
Blithe Field is the name that 20 year old Spencer Radcliffe goes by in the music industry. Radcliffe's age is what really sticks out, not only because he is younger than most of his listeners, but because his music in no way feels young. When listening to Beautiful Wave '74 there are two words that best describe it: sentimental and nostalgic. This may seem odd for a record produced by a 20 year, seeing that he has almost nothing to be nostalgic about. Radcliffe pieces together bits and samples throughout his album in an almost sound collage way. These samples are really what sets this album apart from others, as they are all emotional and incredibly effective. I stumbled onto this album weeks before my high school graduation, so I may be emotionally biased, but the album in its entirety is a close and sentimental experience.
The samples referenced before seem like they are dug out of home videos and dollar bin VHS. The soundbites on the tracks really do set the tone of the album, and paint the picture of youth growing up. The opening track, "Vacation", is a 30 second clip of children leaving their father a voice-mail, which then seamlessly transitions into "Bible School". Bible School is the closest thing Blithe Field gets to a single on this record, as it is probably the most straight forward song out of the thirteen. Once again, the song starts with a sample of what seems to be a father talking to his very young kids, trying to get them to sing. Time after time Radcliffe is able to tug at the heartstrings with outer worldly samples that flash back to childhood or times before his years. It is not just children and father bites that bring nostalgic value to the album, but self help tapes, odd quotes from old failed movies, and my personal favorite, an Allan Watt quote: “See, wherever human beings have been around, you see rectangles and straight lines, because we’re always trying to straighten things out. And, so, that’s the very mark of our presence. I don’t know why we do it; that’s always been a puzzle to me”.
Now all of these samples are great, but what really allows this album to be special, is the music that is melded to make the collage. Simply put, Blithe Field makes down tempo, relaxed electronic music. Radcliffe uses heavy use of loops and repetition throughout the album, and in some ways, his songs resemble traditional beats. However, Blithe Fields tends to build his songs with odd sounds, ambient noises and tones in the background, and of course, the perfectly timed samples. What Spencer Radcliffe does best is set a mood with his music. There is nothing particularly flashy about his music, and none of his songs are earworm catchy, but his albums provide an intimate listen. When you listen to Beautiful Wave '74, it means something to you.
