In a mesmerizing collaboration, Los Angeles-based composers Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore have crafted a stunning album that showcases their “musical telepathy.” Titled “Tragic Magic,” the record is a captivating blend of new age and ambient soundscapes, where Barwick’s ethereal, reverb-drenched vocals and atmospheric synth washes intertwine seamlessly with Lattimore’s shimmering harp.
The album’s origins can be traced back to a series of improvisation sessions the duo held in Paris, shortly after the devastating California wildfires they had experienced as residents. This backdrop of tragedy and resilience permeates the dreamlike haze of the compositions, creating a poignant and emotive listening experience.
The opening track, “Perpetual Adoration,” is a delicate, lullaby-like piece that sets the tone for the album’s introspective journey. The gorgeous and moving “Haze With No Haze” carries a quiet desperation in its brittle, staccato melody and Barwick’s yearning high register, with her indiscernible lyrics blurring into textural whispers that brim with emotion.
While the duo’s individual solo works are captivating in their own right, “Tragic Magic” feels more grand and cinematic, allowing Lattimore’s harp to shine in particular. Occasionally, the pair reach for epic heights, as in their murky take on “Rachel’s Song” from “Blade Runner,” which builds into an effervescent flurry in its final minutes, or on the album’s climactic “Stardust,” where soaring synths and celestial harp flickers are bolstered by a drum kick, the closest the album comes to pop sensibilities.
Yet, just as the listener is swept up in the grandeur, Barwick and Lattimore strip it all back for the fluttering, nearly nine-minute closer “Melted Moon,” where the emotions linger even as the fullness subsides. The result is an album that is both intimate and expansive, a captivating exploration of the human experience through the lens of experimental music.