Former Sydney-sider Charlie Tait (Cambio Sun) is no stranger to the pages of Hillydilly. The artist first appeared on our radar last year with “Intuition”, the debut single under his solo moniker, and pairing with bandmate John Cleworth as "Lusinth", recaptured our attention with the striking instrumental single “Blue”, which we featured back in April. Having since relocated to London, though, Tait has returned focus to his solo endeavour and worked on completing his debut mini-album as Cambio Sun. The resulting oeuvre is the remarkable Retisent, which we are ecstatic to be featuring today. In August this year, we got our first taste of Retisent by way of “Weight of the World”. It was a tantalizing fusion of indie-folk and experimental electronic that drew from and expanded upon the production skill that was demonstrated in “Intuition”, and it acted as the perfect introduction to the new material. When it came time for new composition, though, Tait proved he was not afraid to ask for help with the heavy lifting as he employed the talents of Rhukart Frinkle’s Brass Quartet to add some gusto to the guttural synthesized arrangements of “Finite”. He also introduced string arrangements to what is the standout track of the mini-album, “Mad As They Come”, with cello courtesy of Yoshi Oshiro. The decision to incorporate live recorded instrumentation to his composition has added breadth and complexity to the production, and it makes the this debut all the more impressive. As with most entries into the indie-folk genre, there have been parallels drawn to the greats that have come before Cambio Sun. In particular, the transition from tender falsetto to a stark, almost spoken-word style of singing on both "Weight of the World" and "At Once" does echo the works of Justin Vernon, but a direct comparison would be unfair to Tait. There is SO much more going on here. If you take the time to listen (with good headphones, if you are lucky enough) you'll notice that there's an astonishing number of nuanced electronic manipulations that dwell below the surface. With intelligent production, multiple layers of intriguing sonic maneuvering and folk-styled vocals for days, Cambio Sun has crafted a mini-album that is undoubtedly one the year’s best. This is exactly the kind of exciting new music that we love to listen to, and we are sure that you will agree. This incredible album is available for immediate purchase on iTunes now.
Cambio Sun