Between the electronics, gentle strum of the acoustic guitar, and soundscapes that Jeads incorporates into his music, nothing else could be more relaxing and upbeat at the same time. Jeads is Jonathan Eads, an electronic producer from Bellingham, Washington.
If you pay attention to the mood of the album, it’s a record filled with songs written completely during the night. Even the title track was written about a dream he had several years ago. Some are even taken from his field recorded at night.
The first track on the record is “Deep In The Night.” It is a track that begins with thumping electronics and bass and then throws you for a loop with a beautiful acoustic guitar that compliments the different tones of the instruments very effortlessly. It feels modern, futuristic, and classic all at the same time.
At 7:11, Jeads doesn’t waste any time going from 0 to 100 in intensity; in fact, it doesn’t even begin at zero, more like 40 to 100 over the course of two minutes or so. It gradually settles the electronics and allows the acoustic to guitar to come to center stage, and with both instruments, they complimented each so well. The guitar seemed to settle down the roughness electronics can sometimes sound like. And vice versa, the electronics modernized the track, and created more depth to it.
On the album’s title track, Jeads creates an ambient and true electronic song, as he creates this dream-like state through the song. The track emotes a mysterious, winter-like vibe as you take in each wind chime, each soundscape, and slight movement of a breeze.
The track “Ocean Gray” opens with a bit of a Latin flair on the acoustic guitar and then gradually pulls in elements of electronics that remind me of the ocean and its breeze, and the darkness, moon, and peacefulness that envelopes a beautiful beach at night.
Imagine you’re driving in the evening and the moon is huge; a big beautiful, iridescent white moon and then the track “Afterglow” comes on your stereo. A certain calmness envelopes your body, inviting you to let go of all your fears, apprehensions, and just truly enjoy the music and soundscapes and nature.
On “Sun In The Clouds,” it literally echos the effects of springtime, morning time, and the sun coming out. The acoustic guitar paints an image of what one can imagine the sun peering out behind the clouds at the beginning of a new day. It blends the best of a singer-songwriter mentality but through the notes of the acoustic guitar. The guitar melds alternative rock, indie folk, and traditional folk into a song that contains a story through its ebbs and flows of the rawness of the acoustic guitar and the modernity of the synths.
Track 7 “Lost On The Shoreline” echoes the darkness and ambiance when driving at night. The instrumental electronics take the listener on a journey that is perfect for listening to when night driving. It’s chaotic enough to keep you interested, but one has to appreciate the beautiful chaos that goes into creating instrumental albums. There is something so special at creating something where all need to do as the listener is listen and let it influence how it makes you feel.
The ninth track “Grindstone” on the album is definitely a musician’s track. The guitar work on this track is out of this world; it’s simple, yet truly shows the beauty of instrumental music and just the strum of the acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and drums.
The entire record, Nocturnal Signal, by Jeads is truly a musician’s album. As a listener, you have you appreciate the creativity, planning, and it takes to create an entire musical album, and then to create something that may not have wide audiences without vocals and lyrics. It takes courage, passion, and a ton of creativity to create such an ethereal album such as Nocturnal Signal.
