OA08
Mute Branches - Us Without the World
For a second, indulge the fantasies of the greener grass in the mythical Elsewhere.
James Cresswell’s Mute Branches project ventures to the final frontier on “Us Without the World”, an exercise in optimism weighed down by realism, searching the stars for hope only to find the baggage we already brought with us.
Nine cinematic tracks weave and bob through modes of expression ranging from warm fuzzy drones, colourful electronica, radio-sampled audio collage, retro-futuristic daydreams, guitar-led drifty slowcore, up to dark ambient meditations.
An optimistic sense of wonder and discovery spreads through the first part of the album, only for the second half to find us adrift and confronted with something stranger, colder, and more unpredictable. Disparate by design but united in colouring within Cresswell’s idiosyncratic lines, the tracks give “Us Without the World” a unique flavour of dreaminess and weariness.
Synths, guitars, samples, and voice come together creating a sense of place in full, glorious stereo, forming the most complete of Mute Branches’ releases thus far.
"Special thanks to the beloved people and ghosts of planet Earth."
James Cresswell – sampler, synthesizer, guitar, computer, field recordings
Design: Michał Kęskiewicz
Tracklist
A1. Captain’s Stump 2:08
A2. Triaxial Waltzer 5:24
A3. Another World is Possible 5:04
A4. To Replace the Empty Space 3:36
A5. End of the Voy[A]ge 1:16
B6. The First Weird Sunset 7:36
B7. Cathode Ray Campfires 2:32
B8. By the Time I Get to Olympus Mons 2:36
B9. Empty [B]oats on the Circular River 9:47
After the post-rock, there is still us. Just us.
About the Artist
Starting out with an interest in the textural soundscaping of ambient music and post-rock, James Cresswell’s Mute Branches project has continued to draw on a diverse set of influences in an effort to conjure up a soundtrack for half-remembered spaces and the places you can’t go back to. As well as self-releasing work, he has had music out on labels such as Disintegration State, Bricolage Collective, and Front and Follow.
Find him here:
- Bluesky - @mutebranches
- https://mutebranches.bandcamp.com
As of 2024, his discography consists of:
Fake Real Warm [2016, Bricolage Collective]
Notanymore [2019, Disintegration State]
The Detective is Dead [2020, Disintegration State]
The Missing Cat [2023, self-released]
Us Without the World [2025, okla records]
