At Last An Atlas
Dublin, Leinster, Ireland
Music
Press
4/5 stars
Home to the recent debut by St Catherine’s Home for Lazy Infants, Dublin label Slow Loris is fast becoming the creek where homegrown gold is mined. At Last an Atlas, another lengthy moniker for a solo project, is the work of Hollows member Greg O’Brien. Taking samples and organs as a starting point, O’Brien splices tracks with nylon strings and chimes. There is both consistency (the pensive drone of All Else Fails ) and songs (such as Passing Days ) that begin as simple one-guitar stories but spin off into slow-build gems. The kitsch Bontempi-style beats of Take Me Home hint at the guile that runs through everything. O’Brien’s sweet monotone, possessed of a Lou Barlow fleck on songs such as Wayside Days , is frequently backed by Francis Downey’s vocals. This is an inspired debut of open-hearted stories, fey angles and musical left-turns.
www.myspace.com/atlastanatlas - The Irish Times - Feb 5th 2010
the debut full length release on the slow loris label from dublin based artist at last an atlas. its pretty much a one man band centred around hollows member greg o brien, with just a little help from some friends. greg previoulsy released a limited edition split mini album on the slow loris with singer songwriter paul o reilly. this is a truly beautiful collection of intimate downbeat electronic folk like sounds, lots of gentle throbbing beats, lush synth sounds and hushed vocal tones. for some reason his material always reminds of a more stripped down grandaddy, like some late night take on their sound with a bit of elliott smith blended in. its a beautiful dreamlike collection of intimate electronic pop sounds, it almost reminds me of the kind of thing that you would expect to hear from the morr music label, you know that kind of gentle late night pop sound they specialise in. gently pulsating electronic folk pop at its very very finest. comes with a limited edition free four track bonus cd. only the first 100 copies will come with a bonus cd so get your orders in quick. the bonus cd comes in a handmade screen printed sleeve and features four exclusive tracks recorded specially for this release. the releases on this label are always a thing of real personal beauty, those still trying to track down the awesome wagtail original sleeve will testify to that. dont say you havent been warned this time. february 2010 - Road Records
At Last An Atlas – From Which We Were Raised
4/5 stars
Lovely Reflective Synther-Songwriting
At Last An Atlas’s brand of melodic lyricism has existed through the ages, but it’s traditionally been produced by thoughtful young men lazily strumming lutes/bouzoukis/guitars whilst reclining on divinas in bed sits (depending on geography and time). In contrast, much of From Which We Were Raised sounds like it was produced by a reclining young man strumming an Amstrad computer (possibly loading the classic ‘80s game Roland On The Ropes). And that, although possibly bad for posture, is no bad thing, because we’ve had an overdose of guitars, and the warmly synthesised tones and Gary Numan drum beats that wash in simple arrangements around the softly sung melodies of Greg O’Brien are sufficiently lovely to carry his intimate thoughts on love and relationships and bedroom décor.
It’s not all synthesis and (well recorded) vocals; occasionally O’Brien’s courtly songwriter roots come through in the form of gently plucked guitars (‘Passing Day’s’, ‘Wayside Days’ and ‘Port of Call’). My favourite bits are the ones that feature the additional vocal of Frances Downey (‘Heaven Knows’ and ‘Take Me Home’), probably because I like boy/girl vocals with my synths (something to do with childhood memories of The Human League). Generally, however, this is a very sweet and well produced record, which falls pleasantly between Jeffrey Lewis and Hotchip. Initially I thought it might be nice to have some more dramatic changes in energy or tempo, but after a few more listens I changed my mind. It’s reflective, self contained and works perfectly the way it is.
- Hotpress - Feb 24th 2010
Discography
LPs
Ships Leaving (2009) - A split album with Paul O'Reilly.
"From Which We Were Raised" (2010).
Singles (Airplay)
- Eimear Hush
- Heaven Knows
- New Years Sky
RTE 2fm Live Session
1.New Years Sky
2.Fort Lewis
3.Feuds
4.Take Me Home
Photos
Bio
“At Last An Atlas” is the music of Greg O'Brien. Greg was born and lives in Dublin. He uses organs, live electronics, samplers, nylon string guitar, vocals, noises and field recordings to create his warm, dreamy sounding pop songs.
“From Which We Were Raised” is an album which seamlessly mixes upbeat electronic pop songs and with a number of quieter moments, which contrast and compliment each other to build an album that sits perfectly as a whole. Mixed and mastered by Steve Fanagan the album is filled with melody both instrumentally and vocally. Lyrically the release covers a number of themes and sees Greg writing his finest songs to date. The album also features vocals from Frances Downey whose voice beautifully compliments Greg's on a number of songs.
“This is an inspired debut of open-hearted stories, fey angles and musical left-turns.”
4/5 – The Irish Times (The Ticket)
“A very sweet and well produced record… It’s reflective, self contained and works perfectly the way it is.”
4/5 – Hotpress
The new album comes at the end of what has been a busy first year for At Last An Atlas. Ships Leaving, a split record with songwriter Paul O’Reilly, was released in April 2009. Greg has played consistently for the past year and half playing with MGMT, SJ Esau (Anticon Records), Midori Hirano (Nobel), Adrian Crowley (Chemikal Underground), James Blackshaw, Valerie Frances and many more.
In October 2009, “At Last An Atlas” toured America, playing shows with many artists throughout California, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and Washington state. This tour offered Greg invaluable experience and insight.
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