Rafael Anton Irisarri ‎– Daydreaming

If you're feeling melancholic, pouting about your sad and miserable existence, and need a soundtrack to give those tears another nudge before they finally break through... well... close down the shutters, turn up the rain, and soak in the vibrations of synth padded piano hammers gently stroking uncoiling strings. Regardless of the fact that I'm hearing this album for the first time this late in the year, it confidently catapults itself to the top of my Best of 2007 List. Hailing from Seattle, Rafael cites Gustav Mahler, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel as influences for his compositions that are rich in sound design, bathing in a magnificent love triangle between organic, electro-acoustic, and electronic. Every minimalist click and background noise play as primary instruments in an overall bigger picture. On repeating rotations, the seemingly random notes slowly arrange the million piece puzzle into a picturesque canvas of premeditated relaxation. A masterful debut to be shelved alongside Deaf Center, Marsen Jules, Goldmund, and Max Richter.