John Shannon - American Mystic



ARTiST: John Shannon
ALBUM: American Mystic
BiTRATE: 162kbps avg
QUALiTY: EAC Secure Mode / LAME 3.97 Final / -V2 --vbr-new / 44.100Khz
LABEL: ObliqSound / Roughtrade
GENRE: Indie
SiZE: 48.62 megs
PLAYTiME: 0h 39min 29sec total
RiP DATE: 2008-06-14
STORE DATE: 2008-06-13

Track List:
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01. Forgiveness 2:58
02. Golden Eagle 3:37
03. Butterfly 3:45
04. Under the Stars 4:14
05. Somewhere 4:33
06. All the Way 3:10
07. Falling Into All 3:56
08. Lion's Mane 4:41
09. Seasons 3:23
10. Among the Sea, Among the Star 5:12

Release Notes:
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For those who know John Shannon through his collaborations with such diverse
cutting-edge artists as Sonya Kitchell, Pyeng Threadgill, Hiromi and Haale --
and through his own evolutionary instrumental group Waking Vision -- his debut
solo album American Mystic is sure to be an ear-opener. Having earned a stellar
reputation as a team player by injecting his sweeping, panoramic electric guitar
vistas into everything from country rock to avant-garde jazz, John Shannon now
displays several hitherto unexplored facets of his considerable talent: modern
solo folk singer, songwriter and vocalist with a delicate, virtuosic touch on
acoustic guitar.

Throughout American Mystic's 10 songs, the intimacy and universality of
Shannon's songwriting is exposed via his feather-light whisper of a voice. He
toys with the timing in his phrasing so that a word might arrive after a slight
delay or be extended into the next chord change, and his intricate, closely
miked, layered guitar lines--largely acoustic, with some electric guitar
texturing--wrap around and complement those words, merging with them seamlessly.
His ethereal,contemplative songs are one-on-one, personal narratives. Beginning
with "Forgiveness," the album's opening track, Shannon sets up a template that
he continues to explore more deeply with each new song as the album unfolds.