Ben Zár
Known for work in Guadalajara groups Antoine Reverb & Dorotheo—Ben Zár presents a world premiere of the solo album There Is No Distortion In Heaven available October 27 via the venerable imprint Halfshell Records. Currently touring the west coast, Ben brings about an exquisite array of texture & luster to a sound set to soundtrack all seasons & vast expanses of life’s ever changing landscapes. Through a blending of signature strings & atmosphere emulating arrangements of the electronic & acoustic; Zár provides the world with a cause for pause & a celestial sort of peace that often words & visuals to fail to convey without the infinite power of the melodic/musical component of the craft.
The opening title track “There is No Distortion in Heaven” is reminiscent of the sort of mind-lifting instrumental number that might accompany an educational public broadcasting special. The undulating bass bits & synth chirps carry forward through the thumping mood maze of “Continuum de Consciencia” that literally takes the listener along the astral plane of consciousness (and outside of it as well). Elevated areas of feeling & thought ring forward in reverberations of the cosmic & electric on “Higher Octaves of Love”, as the listener discovers a new world of strange seesawing synths on the wondrous “Auto Semejanza”. Lucid dreams & thought streams collect & connect together on “Lucidez” like living inside a mirage that materializes out of the hot, thin air in a sweltering desert. Ben understands methods to expand the mind flows of consciousness as understood via “The Pain of Awareness” that is an ambient ear worm that burrows into the deepest recesses of the mind’s own faculties of cognizant lucidity, right before you are set off adrift via “Danza De Arraigo” that allows the audience to experience the sensations of floating down stream toward eastern lands & new international waters. Ben Zár introduced us to the solo album There Is No Distortion In Heaven with the following exclusive preface:
I recorded “There Is No Distortion In Heaven” (quoting composer IASOS) my first solo album with the help of sound therapist Carlos Navarro and percussionist Rodrigo Rico. It is an effected electric guitar driven album accompanied by synths, percussions and sound therapy instruments such as tamboura, singing bowls, didgeridoo and overtone singing. It was inspired by my studies of music therapy and experiences with meditation. In this record I explore sound textures that help one to enter a meditative state to relieve stress and pain by recognizing, honoring and liberating emotional buildup.
