Jeff Pearce 'To the Shores of Heaven' (Hypnos) 2000 TO THE SHORES OF HEAVEN, the fifth solo CD by Jeff Pearce is his latest on the Hypnos label, which also released Pearce's fourth CD, DAYLIGHT SLOWLY. An image that comes to me while listening to this album is of being on a small airplane looking out to the west after a beautiful sunset, absorbed in the deepening tones on the horizon, looking through the clouds, imagining the "shores of heaven" in some metaphoric state. This new music by Jeff Pearce has just that feel of vast and spreading spaces underlaid with steady, organic textures; chords that move from major to minor to 9ths and back again in the billowing pads of a contemporary work; hushed and breathy shimmers of sound moving through an ocean of light; ominous bass rumblings that resolve peacefully. Pearce is a musician that concisely wields his sonic paint brushes to create delicate aural landscapes of elegant simplicity. This is a tranquil, expertly crafted album that gets richer with each hearing. The mysteries and complexities of this album are endless, engaging, and as enigmatic as the tones Pearce is capable of coaxing from his treated guitars. Pearce has succeeded in taking the guitar to new dimensions. Unless you read about the guitar in the liner notes, you would find it difficult to recognize the guitar , as most people know it, in the compositions. Pearce creates layers of loops and textures which result in the infinite sustain of endless waveforms. The eleven songs on TO THE SHORES OF HEAVEN, easily achieve what many musicians strive for their during their entire career: a moving, yet restrained work that can simultaneously reveal artful sensitivity and technical accomplishment. From the opening, melancholy textures of "A Fading" (that could serve well as the opening title soundtrack of a motion picture) to the resplendent tones of "Reunions," Pearce leads the listener through a variety of well crafted soundscapes. TO THE SHORES OF HEAVEN, is one of Pearce's finest albums to date. Highly recommended.   information: email: pearce@tctc.com website: www.hypnos.com/pearce Review by Ben Kettlewell

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