Album Review: A Perfect Sphere

Almost two years ago Wellington artist Metanoia (a solo project of Shae McKenzie) released the debut EP Green and Peaceful Lake, a three-track follow up to 2021’s single Sonder. Both were layered, introspective instrumentals, showcasing McKenzie’s taste for processed and echoed finger-picked guitars, field recordings, synth soundscapes, tape loops and ambience. Whilst Sonder had upbeat and dance elements the subsequent EP was a much quieter and darker piece of escapism, inspired by a fine summer day at a lake that suddenly changed when a drowning occurred.

Metanoia returns this month with a follow up and album proper (albeit only 23 minutes long), A Perfect Sphere, picking up where McKenzie left off on Green and Peaceful Lake. Back again are the layers of cleanly and sweetly processed guitars with finger-picked bass backing, synths and samples, which form the bulk of the material across its nine tracks. Middle Cog, Fabric, Illusion of Depth and Absolution are all fundamentally guitar tracks in this style that McKenzie is making his own – melodies slowly and tastefully developed in a manner that inspires reflection and peace. Only in a few shorter moments, on A Perfect Sphere, Wairua and Tangaroa (which include karakia) and the closing The Grove / The Forest does McKenzie bring in his other signature parts of weird tape loops, reversed samples and barely audible spoken word. These are the more original pieces of the material here and I was glad to hear them again after their prominence on Green and Peaceful Lake, as unsettling as they are.

Together these two styles are complementary and make for a coherent piece, though perhaps not as organically shapeless and smeared across the whole record (in a good way) as was the case on the previous EP. On Green and Peaceful Lake it was hard to tell where the transitions between tracks really happened unless you were listening closely, whereas here each track is more distinct and singular, defining itself from the music preceding and following it.

Musicianship and a talent for production techniques are on clear display here, and I am glad McKenzie has continued with the theme set by earlier releases to create a signature sound that is so clearly Metanoia. I am sure there is more to come too. Where these individual pieces hold together as a collection, I feel sure Metanoia’s best release is yet to come in the form of a sprawling singular shape of themed ambience with recurring motifs and a range of moods, played across a 45 minute soundscape – something to lose yourself in, meditate with, go to sleep with or use to bring whatever calmness you need in your life. A Perfect Sphere is Metanoia making a major step towards something like that. Second albums are tricky; any artist will tell you. In the case of Metanoia, it will be something to look forward to with A Perfect Sphere wonderfully filling a musical space for you until then.