posted: 2024-04-23 A Lonely Sinner samlrc

Well, this was quite a surprise. I’ve been meaning to check out samlrc’s music, but it just kept slipping through my mind. But seeing a lot of positive reception for A Lonely Sinner, I thought now was a good time to check her out. And wow! This was great. While I don’t review a whole lot of ambient rock albums, I’ve always had a love for this type of sound, and A Lonely Sinner is no different. The production from top to bottom is nothing short of amazing. It has this feeling of innocence mixed in with feelings of anger and obviously loneliness, all put together to create this fucked up yet beautiful sound scape. One track that really showcases these feelings perfectly is “Flowerfields.” While it’s mostly a piano ballad, there are other elements in the production that make these feelings ever more complex. It’s beautiful, but also cold and lonely, and the broken but soft vocals just add to that.

“For M.” is another great track that perfectly mixes feelings of anger and beauty. I love the transitions between hard rock and these soft melodies, which really just speaks to the theme of the album of anger and innocence. “Storge” is by far one of my favorite tracks of the album, having some of the best production I’ve heard this year. I just love how it takes its time with its build up, sometimes teasing us and then bringing us back to these ambient moments, before finishing it off with a huge bang, and then fading away. It’s such a chilling track that I think was done perfectly. “The Beauty of the Present Moment” is a great final track for an angry yet beautiful album, just feeling like someone is coming to terms with all of their complicated feelings. Overall, A Lonely Sinner definitely did not disappoint. The production is absolutely beautiful yet exciting, and the vocals really just paired with the emotional turmoil of the album. I now see why this album has gotten so much praise. It’s so good.

CJay, AotY