William Sanford made his debut in 2019 when he released the single The Outside. Since then, the musician from NW Indiana, USA, has released five albums and six singles and EPs. Boomer Vibes "Sessions" came out last October 1st and is the reason for writing you these lines.
Words by Marco Guerra
Discovered via http://musosoup.com
Photo credits: Christina Sanford
In the press release of Boomer Vibes "Sessions", Sanford tells us that one day he asked a blogger how he would classify his music and he answered that psychedelic would be the easiest and safest classification... This episode doesn't stop there but I'm going to focus only on this classification, as psychedelic is indeed a thread that runs through much of William Stanford's music from his 2019 debut. And you must also add a certain amount of irony and sarcasm.
In Boomer Vibes "Sessions", besides all this mood and coolness, we also find a wide range of worlds and references. The whole album follows a downtempo cadence, when it comes to drums. As we listen to it, we imagine ourselves in places as disparate and exotic as Kingston or some kind of futuristic-ancient Greece, if this is even imaginable!
It's amazing how Boomer Vibes "Sessions" can have such an organic and at the same time synthetic sound. Suddenly you're listening to sitars, like in "Florals With Mr. Gramophone", then you find yourself wrapped in funky bass lines and rhodes chords, like in "Pluto Will Always Be A Planet In A Boomer's Heart", in which a sitar (or is it ukulele?) is also featured.
The synthesisers with their vintage tonality are also one of the main players in William Sanford's music. And then, there are simply delightful details, like the electric guitar in "Hey Mister, Would You Go Bop". But for example in "Boomer's Got A Gramophone" we feel a whiff of acid synths, which coexists with pianos, an effusive rise and a powerful bass line. "Flappejacks" has a very “The Avalanches-Mr. Scruff” vibe, it's a hymn to coolness.
"We May Be Old, But Our Brains Still Dance" is the "mirror ball" moment of the album, where bass, house music synths and, once again, the sitar invite you to dance. "Ghosts Be Vibin'" has such narrative richness and musical complexity that had me completely hooked. And to close the album, nothing like some church bells. And a very kaleidoscopic relaxation session. It's "Nag Champa", guys!
Boomer Vibes "Sessions" is a huge breath of fresh air, an album that somehow makes an ode to the boomer generation and puts into perspective ageing, which doesn't have to be a boring and dull thing.