{"title":"Chuck Johnson","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"the-cinder-grove","title":"The Cinder Grove","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe follow-up to Johnsons lauded Balsams album, The Cinder Grove delves further into the compositional possibilities of the pedal steel guitar, creating a type of Country Post Rock with touches of the cosmic . This halcyon collection of tracks draws on a wider palette of sounds, adding strings and piano, to dive deeper into the sound bath of Johnsons meditative music. The Cinder Grove is a profound, affecting statement on the nature of loss and irreplaceability as well as a major addition to the canon of Johnsons increasingly seminal work and has drawn praise from Pitchfork and The Guardian amongst others.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tak:Til","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50473778577739,"sku":"1112736","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50473780674891,"sku":"1112735","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/708257ef-611e-4bad-9e6e-fbda95c14d66_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727430854"},{"product_id":"sun-glories","title":"Sun Glories","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn his new album \u003ci\u003eSun Glories\u003c\/i\u003e, Oakland-based musician, composer, and producer Chuck Johnson explores themes of time, memory, and illusion through his unique blend of pedal steel, synths, organs, strings, and drums. Opening track \"Teleos\" explores the linear and cyclical qualities of time itself through episodic sections and motifs, which evoke the bittersweet relief and nostalgia that flood the senses with the arrival of the first warm and sunny day after a long, dark, and rainy stretch of winter. According to Johnson, the piece \"took a surprising turn when I started adding guitar textures that recall the music I played and listened to when I was much younger.\" Evocative fields of guitars and pedal steel conspire to spark an intoxicating palimpsest of memories, before being ushered forward by an improvisatory and propulsive drum performance from Ryan Jewell.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe guitar-based \"Sylvanshine\" captures a moment between improvisation and nascent composition, elevated by a radiant glissandi performance by electro-acoustic saxophonist Cole Pulice. \"This track is an appreciative nod to Rachika Nayar, whose recent works have re-opened the electric guitar for me and inspired me to play that instrument again after a hiatus of several years,\" explains Johnson.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn \"Ground Wave\" Johnson revisits the composition technique of weaving a small string ensemble into clouds of pedal steel, similar to his approach on \"Red Branch Bell' from his 2021 LP \u003ci\u003eThe Cinder Grove\u003c\/i\u003e. \"When the pedal steel solo comes in at about 3:30, I wanted to make it feel like the ground suddenly disappearing from under the listener’s feet.\" To achieve his vision for this piece, Johnson work with cellist Clarice Jensen (who Johnson has worked with on film scores and in live performances), and violinist Emily Packard (who Johnson knew from his time at Mills College), both of whom layered multiple parts to create a virtual chamber ensemble.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe album concludes with \"Broken Spectre,\" a play on a term describing a ghostly optical illusion caused by sunlight bending over a mountain covered in mist or clouds. Once again Johnson's gorgeous pedal steel melodies build into a hypnotic swirl, which develops an epic sense of grandeur with the addition of Ryan Jewell's anthemic drumming. As the mist clears and the sun breaks through, this final track leaves the listener with a feeling of hope and resolution.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Western Vinyl","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50474567795019,"sku":"2206000","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Sun_Glories_9f77f60b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727436658"},{"product_id":"music-from-burden-of-proof","title":"Music From Burden Of Proof","description":"\u003cp\u003eMusic composed and recorded for the HBO TV series directed by Cynthia Hill. Chuck Johnson’s evocative arrangements utilise a sound palette that includes electronic textures, chamber music and pedal steel guitar to conjure a collection of mood pieces that work both as documentary score, and the most varied and intriguing record that the artist has produced to date.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCalifornia-based composer, producer, and musician Chuck Johnson approaches his work with an ear towards finding faults and instabilities that might reveal latent beauty, with a focus on pedal steel guitar, experimental electronics, alternate tuning systems, and composing for film and television. Recordings of his work have been published by VDSQ, Thrill Jockey, Temporary Residence, Kompakt, Ghostly, and Three Lobed, among others. Johnson’s credits as a film composer include scores for the HBO film Private Violence and the popular television series Somewhere South and A Chef's Life.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"All Saints","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50509640663371,"sku":"2027356","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/WAST064_Chuck_Johnson_3000_4c47bc9b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727867000"},{"product_id":"balsams","title":"Balsams","description":"\u003cp\u003eChuck Johnson’s pedal steel guitar debut delivers a group of pieces for ambient meditation. Recorded in a single two-week session during late 2015, and subsequently arranged \/ constructed \/ treated in the studio in spring of 2016, Balsams is awash in layers of tonal perfection. The album constantly evolves while maintaining a unified approach across both sides. Balsams is a record that lives outside genre and me, one that continues to develop with each successive deep listen. Tak:til is releasing “Balsams” for the first time ever on CD - with two additional tracks.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“On this expressive and singular new album, Chuck Johnson gives his steel pedal guitar the starring role, and creates a kind of country post-rock. It feels like a universe unto itself.”-- Pitchfork (8.1)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Chuck Johnson often writes for solo acoustic guitar, but lately has been stretching his ambient composition skills with the tenderness heard throughout his discography. For Balsams, he layers loops of pedal steel guitar that rest on the edge of dusk, just when the tumult of day subsides and seeps into the soul’s reflection.”-- NPR: Best Music of 2017\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tak:Til","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50526587945291,"sku":"1064026","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/2b52a8e4-de3a-4f19-9229-129dd8dd72e1_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1728045599"},{"product_id":"precession","title":"Precession","description":"\u003cp\u003e A limited edition cassette original released by VDSQ, Chuck Johnson reclaimed all remaining stock and it is available here. Somewhat lost during the pandemic, a great glimpse into the world that Chuck was creating in the \"Balsams\" \/ \"The Cinder Grove\" era\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Three Lobed Recordings","offers":[{"title":"Tape","offer_id":51358315020619,"sku":"R1245-7354","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/201375019613.jpg?v=1740748019"},{"product_id":"the-cinder-grove-1","title":"The Cinder Grove","description":"\u003cp\u003eOriginally released by VDSQ, all rights reverted to Chuck Johnson and this is the remaining stock from that original pressing. Elegantly pressed and transporting, perfect for every mood. Feels like one missed by many folks who were over the moon by his \"Balsams\" title and happy to give this one another life...\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Three Lobed Recordings","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":51358395629899,"sku":"R6558-8724","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/201375019612.jpg?v=1740749108"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/chuck-johnson.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}