Japan and Porcupine Tree keyboard player Richard Barbieri releases his brand new solo album Under A Spell though Kscope Records today, February 26.
To celebrate he's released an epic eight-minute plus video for Flare 2, an evolving soundscape of synths, trumpets and intriguing classical instrumentation with an equally enthralling visualiser courtesy of animator Matthew Entecott.
Under A Spell was originally intended as Barbieri’s fourth solo album and a direct follow up to its predecessor, 2016’s Planets + Persona. That record, made in different studios across Europe and heavily incorporating live performances from a range of musicians, was adventurous and bold, showcasing Barbieri’s endlessly inventive song writing and mastery of electronic music. The follow-up would pick up where it left off, journeying further into the expansive terrain he mapped out on the previous record. And then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and everything changed.
“I wrote and recorded it in my studio at home, with all this strangeness going on outside,” says Barbieri of Under A Spell. “It became something completely different: this weird, self-contained dream-state album.”
Under A Spell is out now on CD, gatefold double black vinyl LP, limited edition gatefold double red vinyl LP (exclusive to the Kscope store) and digitally.
