Julian Tcherassi is the kind of artist who makes music feel like a natural extension of himself; the way he commands a melody makes it sound as though he is pulling his expressively mellifluous classical flamenco guitar work straight from his own soul, and that is where the magic in his latest single, Death of the Universe, comes alive. The Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter and classical flamenco guitarist brings more than 18 years of playing into an indie-folk release that feels sacredly scorched.
With an almost art-rock approach to his vocals, Tcherassi defies the indie-folk formula with harmonic notes that become part of the frankly stunning instrumental framework. It is impossible to come away from Death of the Universe without feeling the emotion of it; the way he avoids forced diction and lets his lyrics cascade over his guitar strings makes the experience all the rawer within the production that mimics church acoustics with an arcanely choral glow.
You can hear the shadow of Radiohead, Morrissey, Pink Floyd and Jeff Buckley in the dramatic foundations of the release, while the guitar language nods towards Mendeleyev and Tommy Emmanuel through its fingerstyle intricacy and flamenco-rooted movement. Lyrically, Death of the Universe treats endings as thresholds, turning pain, release and rebirth into something almost liturgical.
Death of the Universe is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.
Review by Amelia Vandergast
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