To say that this sort of thing isn’t my forte is probably the largest understatement of my career as a reviewer, so don’t expect me to make all those clever analysis and witty comparisons we reviewers are so incredibly fond of; I honestly don’t know enough about the style to even have a relatively informed opinion. While some of you may see this confession of ignorance to be nothing more than a half assed ploy to try to excuse my incompetence, I call it taking a chance. This time, the gamble just so happened to work out in my favor.

I’ve heard plenty of instrumental bands here and there, but none have been able to capture my attention. Nearly every experience I’ve had with instrumental music has ended in a horrifically pretentious disaster of mind numbingly boring shite. At the most I’d throw on a few songs here and there while working or reading, or maybe to go to sleep to, but I find very little worth in music that’s created to be ignored and placed in the background as a form of ambient white noise to help you go to sleep. However, A Burning Light succeeds where so many like-minded artists have failed.

While normally the absence of a vocalist would bother me, what would usually be a conspicuous absence in most bands here becomes a pivotal opportunity to allow for a broader, expansionist mindset that lets the music freely roam around, considering each tonal shift with a soul heavy weight of importance. “At the Feet of Sleeping Giants” furtively swells and expands with a patience of emotional exploration, ruminating over a pivotal melodic phrase with subtle changes and variations before easing into the somber tranquility of “Across Mountain Tops to Broken Bridges”. The album then takes a turn to the tension building cadences of the pensive “Between the Smoke and Mirrors”, before crashing into the somber, ethereal peaks and valleys of “We Cast these Shadows”, finally closing with the enchanting soul felt exploration of “A Burning Light”.

The Autumn Project have delivered a staunchly impressive addition to that sort of Neurosis/Isis genre of deeply emotional expressionism that’s been bustling with so much activity and talent these past few years. A Burning Light is quite literally a ‘listening experience’ in the best ways, taking the listener on a contemplative journey of lush musical textures and glorious soundscapes that seep into the bones, demanding the listener engage with the material both spiritually and intellectually. I’m quite glad to say this is well worth the effort.