I am sitting still and letting the music wash over me, waiting for inspiration to give my writing muse a push so I can get this blog done. Now! It’s been in my inbox for a week, fer cryin’ out loud. I’ve listened to the album several times, weaving it in and out of other blogs and the music they inspired, hoping it would catch some of the mojos from those examples. Alas, it still sits in my inbox.

I was sitting here just now, asking myself, ‘What does this music do to me?’ There are albums that I call my go-to’s. I “go to” them to lift my spirit on days when I want to stop the world and get off this planet. I go to them when I want some special music to acknowledge an occasion, a birthday, for example. I go to music because it can do things for me.

Music makes me feel good about myself.

Music heals emotional wounds.

Music can make me sing, even though I can’t sing.

Music gives me energy.

Music inspires me.

Music can make a blog appear out of nowhere because music inspires me to put how I feel into words. And those words are popping up quite literally while I write this posting.

On the first listen of this album, I was on the verge of throwing it onto the pile of also-rans. I’m glad I didn’t because I gave it another spin a day or so later and felt a glimmer of hope buried in those songs. Another day passed, and I was starting to grow fond of this album. The breakthrough came on Wednesday, I listened again, and I had a light bulb moment. I liked this album. I didn’t force it; it came on its own. It wasn’t contrived; it was genuine, not a Facebook-like. It was and is real. I like the album New Era by the Black Lilys.

Why? What is there about this album that turned indifference into attraction? Damn, now we’re back to the hard stuff. How do I put how I feel into words? What is the source of my interest in this album? I’ll start with the smart use of percussion/percussion sounds and how it changes. The song Invisible Strings, for example, begins with a gentle slow percussive sound sharing the stage with a voice that is almost a lament. However, by the time the song is barely a minute, there is a shift to a faster pace and uplifted vocals with added percussion, such as a wood block. The song then begins its transformation with changes back and forth in pacing and adding other musical forms, such as guitar and taikos. Hit pause and go and look it up. I didn’t know what taikos were, either. All of those, as mentioned above, create a multi-layered composition with a lot going on. Take your time listening to this and unravelling it for the beauty within. I went to the extreme of listening. I would listen for 30 seconds, rewind, and listen again. I was trying to parse out what was happening in the music. And what that music was doing to my neurons because it was taking me to a happy place.

Wow, that’s a lot for just one song, a good song, I might add. The rest of the album is the same, only different. Black Lillys is a pair of talented siblings hailing from Lyon, France. Camille Faure provides the vocals, and Robin Faure provides the guitar melodies. I couldn’t find credits for playing the keys, percussion and programming, so I will go out on a limb and split that credit between them. It doesn’t make a difference while you are listening, sit back and let the music of Camille and Robin take you away.

Camille Faure and Robin Faure tell us about their new album: New Era. “Our first album ‘Boxes’ taught us to reveal our own flaws and I think this album, ‘New Era‘, lets the light shine through. The last few years were very challenging in many ways. The more we learn about the world we live in, the angrier we get, and on the other hand, the more fascinated and amazed we are.”

“Every crisis carries with it a chance for creative forces to build new paths and to reinvent the world. It may be your own personal crisis or a global crisis. Where despair grows, hope grows. Like fresh spring after an endless winter, a new era is upon us whether we like it or not. This is what our album is about. New Era is not aiming for the best of worlds.”

Black Lilys gave me fresh air in this album, and I am glad I didn’t scoot this one to the trash bin instead of listening to it several times and gaining new admiration for the Black Lilys. You can send this blog to the trash bin, but I urge you to give this album more than one listen. I also recommend listening to it focused on the music, not Facebook. The Black Lilys have created a gem of great beauty that shines brightly and rises above the humdrum of the day. I look forward to hearing it again. The sooner, the better.