Architect // C Duncan
Scottish composer, C Duncan’s debut release Architect is burgeoning with energy that harks back to summer days gone by. The composer has a degree in composition from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and incorporates his choral background into dreamy pop melodies reminiscent of Fleet Foxes. His music is tinged with a smorgasbord of influences and it’s this versatility which makes him a strong contender for the Mercury Prize 2015.
‘For’, the album’s opening track, floats along on on a heady concoction of whistling and melancholy guitar strumming. The track is delicate but intricate, evocative of a spider’s web on a dewy spring morning. ‘Silence and Air’ builds on the charming, ethereal quality established in ‘For’, building to a dramatic crescendo. This sense of layering is derived from the fact that each instrument was recorded individually, in a Glaswegian bedroom studio. Duncan harmonises with himself across the record, demonstrating a clear technical skill and propensity for perfection in his craft. All this combines to make C Duncan a more than worthy recipient of the Mercury Prize.
Words by Beth Kirkbride