To grapple with true loss through the medium of art is a noble and difficult feat. Grief is one of the most vulnerable processes we go through as humans, and to take that journey and share our experience of it with the world can be a harrowing thought. But with so much to be gained in facing those explorations, the pair of Maureen Batt and Grej have chosen to face that challenge in their new album Lighthouse, a contemplative and dynamic work that weaves classical and electronic ideas into a powerful soundscape.
The album is inspired by the life and loss of the duo’s dear friend, Ashley Belding. It started with a conversation Batt had with her brother-in-law, filmmaker Tom Belding.
“I said I was thinking about a commission involving letters,” Batt says. “And he wondered if I would ever do something with his letters to his late wife.” Feeling “honoured to work with that text and inspiration”, Batt and Belding connected with their mutual friend Greg Harrison (Grej) for the role of composer, and the project took off from there.
Utilizing the letters as well as both Ashley and Tom’s journal entries, Batt and Grej began the collaborative process that would create Lighthouse. Abstract, evocative, and ruminative, both artists bring unique forces to this experience. With Grej having a background in both classical and electronic music, the sonic landscape he weaves feels like it satellites those two worlds, nebulous and adaptive. Batt’s haunting voice blooms forth in a glorious complement and contrast to much of the synth-work, at times operatic and stunning, at others a confiding whisper.
The structure of the album itself is something of great note. “After multiple discussions with Tom about how we wanted to shape this album,” Grej explains, “it became clear to us that it didn’t feel right parsing each piece into a separate emotion/mood.” Following that realization, the shape became something more open than a traditional front-to-back album experience. Each track feels like it could be its own entry point or climax, moving along with the amorphous flow.
The title track of Lighthouse contains so much of the core of this album’s intent and experience. Utilizing words from Tom’s journal, Batt calls out wispy words of gratefulness overtop of a spiraling path of synthetic steps. Beyond the use of found words, found sounds are also a core concept, woven throughout in the forms of ice and water-a recurring and poignant symbol in the concept of the album and Tom’s filmwork to encapsulate the uncontrollable tides of emotion- or in the simple song of a bird beneath piano musings on “From This Universe to the Next.”
A striking complexity and depth are found in tracks such as “Letter To Death,” whose precise rhythm of sampled pencil scratches and paper flips punctuates the rising and falling piano line and spoken words of sober determination, before giving way to a mournful, choral dirge. But simplicity is also an ally of Batt and Grej, “Come Find Me In A Dream” eliciting powerful heartache and longing through a stirring back and forth between Grej and Batt. Utilizing Tom’s journal entries that recount dreams of Ashley after her passing, the words are undeniably potent and fill the heart with true grief:
G: Come find me in a dream.
MB: I’m here, light-years away.
G: So many questions but not enough time.
Without a doubt, the standout song of Lighthouse is also the most unexpected. Grej describes how a rule for him was to utilize Batt’s voice in arrangements as much as possible before using his go-to instrumentation, and “Pieces of You” accomplishes this in an astonishing manner. A ping-pong of pads and fragments of Batt’s vocalizations build and bounce off one another, resembling the work of Steve Reich, before moving into an ever-growing dark electronic swell. Eventually, the dam bursts, and an overwhelming wave of buzzing synth, kick drums, and a ghostly wail wash over the listener, churning with intensity. It truly is the epitome of this potent collaboration’s resonant beauty and a testament to both artists’ abilities.
Lighthouse is a powerful venture into the annals of grief. Not only is it an exceptionally well-executed body of music, it is profound in its dive into a real loss that reverberates through each member of this creative endeavor. But with something so personal at the core of the experience, depicting the universality of grief was always the guiding force the group wished to convey- which they have accomplished beautifully.
“I can truthfully say that I’m not sure I’m ready for everyone to hear the album, while I’m also very excited to share this project,” Batt admits. “I continue to oscillate between wanting it to be personal and wanting everyone to hear it…But I do hope people find joy, healing, and love.”