If you’ve ever worked in an office, you well know how some music is just not ‘safe for work.’ For instance gangsta rap and thrash metal may fit right in with your drive to and from work, but these genres might rub some of (many of?) your colleagues the absolute wrong way. Such behavior may even lead to a private conversation with folks in the HR department. Then there is Biscuit Shrine, which is just the opposite. Even though it’s filled with electric guitars, it is still relatively safe to play at work. It’s also good for at-work mindfulness.
This music is office-ready because the seven tracks on Between the Real are all overtly melodic. There isn’t much percussion, nor are there too many rhythmic changes. Although one might draw lines that connect these pieces with Phillip Glass and Brian Eno’s more ambient works, these Biscuit Shrine compositions are far more traditional than the music those two creative giants have made. In fact, one lovely recording titled “Lisp” comes off much like a song without lyrics and singing. One can well imagine vocals and words added to it. Like many of the selections on this release, it’s also long. In this case, 6:07. With that said, though, it’s still not the longest entry on Between the Real. That honor goes to the last track, “Ian – Discontinuum,” which clocks in at a lengthy 8:08.
BANDCAMP https://biscuitshrine.bandcamp.com/
All of these songs were written, produced and recorded by Ryder Lush, who also performed and mixed the project. This music was tracked between 2022 and 2023 and laid down in Lush’s bedroom. This does, as a matter of fact, come off as late-night music. “Denmark,” for instance, has a meditative feel to it. It’s almost as though this is the soundtrack of one person laying on his/her bed, eyes closed daydreaming about all sorts of life’s mysteries.
While these are primarily electric guitars, this music doesn’t sound particularly like rock & roll. Instead, the electronics associated with these amplified instruments have been used to create a much gentler sort of soundscape. There are moments, especially during the album’s prettiest moments, where some of Johnny Marr’s softer Smiths instrumentation comes to mind. Marr has said that one of his goals, when first starting that famous Manchester band, was to create less macho electric guitar sounds. Knowing what we now know about his cowriter, Morrissey, it’s easy to see how macho just wouldn’t have worked in the Smiths. Biscuit Shrine certainly leans toward more precious instrumental sounds. Nothing here is jagged or jarring. In fact, it’s some of the softest guitar music, this side of Windham Hill in the ‘80s.
These songs won’t distract you from your work during the day, and they might just aid you in getting to sleep quicker at night. Not that these tracks are boring; rather, they’re just so sweet and peaceful. In addition to the Windham Hill reference, another influence on this recording could be the 4AD label. You might say 4AD was like Windham Hill for hipsters. No matter what you may want to compare Biscuit Shrine to, Between the Real is one truly lovely series of recordings that gives the heart plenty of joy and peace.
Garth Thomas