KEY POINTS:
Herald rating: * * * *
Label: Inertia
Verdict: One man band conjures up album length musical daydream
Sleeping States is a one-man band made up of British multi-instrumentalist Markland Starkie whose music is placid and gentle yet playful.
And yes, There The Open Spaces lulls you into various states of gorgeous slumber and turns your daydreams into blissful reality.
The songs are beautifully patched together at "home and elsewhere" in a kooky, off-kilter way. He merges sometimes soothing, sometimes shimmering guitar, his tranquil and dead-pan voice, and found sounds (like the rain on The Times I Have Fallen For You which makes it sound like he's singing in the shower) to create a mix of sad, love sick, joyous, and reflective songs.
On Contact Lunacy he wanders "from the scrublands of his mind to the mountains of his heart" accompanied by a melancholy guitar and a weird but cute wheezing interlude; September, Maybe sounds like Sonic Youth's lilting and light-hearted moments; and I Wonder thrums along to a catchy indie-pop-rock beat making it the most memorable track here.
But There The Open Spaces is not about single standouts and has to be listened to as a whole - one big long daydream, if you like - because the songs ebb and flow into each other effortlessly.
The overall effect is one of total relaxation.
