58. Single Preview of The Beacon by Ian Roland
Originally Published October 29th, 2024
About the Artist
It has to be something about the turning season; fall is most certainly upon us. With that, I just can’t get enough folk, enough roots, enough bluegrass. The organic feel of acoustic music accompanying the changing leaves, the soft percussion of rainfall. The silence of the morning air that can start to be seen from our breath in the morning. The crisp dew as is defrosts from the bitter night. These elements just seem to blend perfectly with nature’s music.
This connection to nature is a passion that Ian Roland certainly understands. In fact, he is often inspired by the beautiful and natural things around him. It’s what inspired his upcoming single, The Beacon. “The Beacon pays homage to the Adonis Blue Butterfly and the landscape of the South Downs National Park, near Hassocks, UK.” Ian not only has a love for nature, but he understands the importance of preserving it. Referencing similar observations by artists like Joni Mitchell, Ian has found passion in the preservation of our natural planet and is haunted by the destruction that we’ve caused while occupying it.
Roland has worked in the music industry for quite a while. Starting as a driver for Parkgate Residential Recording Studios, he met producer Tim Cross, a meeting that would ignite a twenty-year partnership in music.
Roland has released several works on Spotify to date, including two other releases this year with Living in Sound and July’s release of Lodestone. His last LP, The Wood Wide Web was released in February of 2023.
About the Song
The Beacon is Ian Roland’s upcoming single release, coming to us all on October 31st, 2024. With a runtime of about 4 minutes, it features Roland on vocals and guitar, as well as Dave Coomber on bass, James Chapman on drums, Mishkin Fitzgerald on piano and backing vocals, and Simon Yapp on violin and viola. It was recorded at Brighton Road Recording Studios, and engineered by Jake Skinner. It was mastered at Subvert Central Mastering by Bob Macciochi.
About the Music
The song comes in with Roland on vocals and a 12-string guitar. Offering up a tenor-range vocal performance, and the guitar alternating between arpeggios and strummed chords. The band shortly comes in with subtle introductions before making their full appearance at the first chorus.
I love the chord progression of this song. Roland is unafraid to experiment with an appropriate amount of dissonance, and the resolution just leaves a serene feeling of bliss. The backing vocals offered up by Fitzgerald open the space at the ceiling of the song and the stringed instruments are dynamic with legato strokes of the bow during the chorus, then changing to a staccato approach in the bridge. Chapman is in complete control of the tempo and knows exactly what to play to match the mood of the song.
This song is about as polished as a song can get. But it’s not derivative of anything. It is its own song, giving a feeling that every single instrumentalist contributed a part of themselves to the finished piece. It doesn’t feel rehearsed, arranged, or directed. It gives me the feeling that the creative process in rehearsals is a very liberal one. The result is a collective emotional experience coming together as one absolutely brilliant community of sound. If South Downs is half as beautiful as The Beacon, then I know it must be an extraordinary sight.
About the Lyrics
Lyrically, Roland is quite the imaginative storyteller, taking us on a journey to South Downs, with his words, and allows us to even walk in his footsteps while he does it:
“Head full of noise, just start waking up the hill to the beacon. Chalk grassland slopes rolling to the sea. A Skylark calls, 1,000 feet high above.”
As stated, this feels like Roland (or the narrator) is sharing the experience of visiting their beacon. Alluding to the stress of life that brings him there, the narrator is telling us that the beacon is their place to breathe, to meditate, and to let go.
“High on the beacon, we dissolve and re-appear. Landscape takes us home to Adonis Blue.”
I love the line to “dissolve and re-appear,” similar to tearing down and building back up. We all need a place like that which can offer this type of reset. Describing it makes it feel so fantastical but it is simply our natural world.
We are a technologically advanced species. But we came from the natural world. There will always be a genetic code in our DNA that pulls us back to it. Though some may feel the pull more than others, it is there for all of us. It’s the reason stepping out into the sunlight every morning wakes us up more successfully than any cup of coffee. Our bodies thrive on nature.
Isn’t Roland has found lyrics that speak to the natural desires in all of us. The poetic movement of his words move right along with the complex and wonderful sound of his music.
Final Thoughts
Ian Roland is a well established and accomplished musician. One can only wonder why, in a career of producing great works after great works, why he never crossed over to mainstream success. I could only guess that it’s the sad reality that organic compositions such as this are overlooked in an age where digital music is the driving force within the industry.
Of course, digital music has its place, but it’s sad to think about and a bit fallacious, if you ask me. As more and more artists push out digital hit after digital hit, it is folk artists like Taylor Swift who stand at the top of the industry mountain. Does she experiment outside of the organics? All the time. She’s Taylor Swift. She has every tool in the world available to her. But, it is my opinion that she is most successful when her music is stripped back and organic. Like her sensational album, folklore.
More and more, artists are beginning to miss the joy of getting calloused finger tips from playing their guitars and listeners are gravitating back to that sound too. Maybe that’s our beacon and maybe Ian Roland’s purpose is to guide us to that sound when we get lost in the fray.
Dear Jeff, Thank you so much for listening to and writing a review of my new song, 'The Beacon'. I really appreciate your time and effort and I am really glad you liked the song. Being an independent artist can be a tough road to travel at times. Words of encouragement and support, like your review, really do mean a lot. Thank you! Best wishes, Ian
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