Noveller builds otherworldly soundscapes from just a guitar on “Deep Shelter”

As Noveller, Sarah Lipstate—and solely Sarah Lipstate—conjures entire orchestras from her guitar, building soaring lead lines on top of gentle drones and arpeggiated rhythmic tones to create a lushly ambient, post-rock swell. It’s a sound that’s found her paired on tour with more obviously kindred artists like St. Vincent but also admirers like Iggy Pop, where her time on his recent Post-Pop Depression dates reportedly inspired songs on the upcoming A Pink Sunset For No One, due Feb. 10 on Fire Records.

Not that you’d be able to discern that from “Deep Shelter,” the album’s opening track, streaming exclusively at The A.V. Club, which is a song that Lipstate wrote before hitting the road with Pop. There’s no hint of road-dogging tumult here; nothing that evokes a shirtless Iggy Pop bursting in to beat his brains. Instead, “Deep Shelter” is a typically gorgeous and slow-burning number that recalls classic kosmiche, with Lipstate wringing impressively layered synth and piano sounds from just six strings. It’s a warm introduction to what’s sure to be another entrancing record.

 
Join the discussion...