After a couple of band-based records, New Age guitar wizard Carl Weingarten ‘goes it alone’ for his latest offering An Endless Premonition. With one notable exception.
An Endless Premonition — now available for sale at Amazon and CD Baby — is a return of sorts to the extended, sonically ambient electronica present in his earliest works back in the 80s. “Spurlos” (stream above) is a gentle sonic wash that Weingarten achieves solely by guitar and clever use of effects that he calls atomic delays to achieve this fully rich sound. And the warm vibe never lets up: The sonic makeup of “Landreth Lights” resembles a massive string section, imperceptibly rising and receding like the tide.
Things take a slightly more somber tone on “An Endless Premonition” and it’s there that the exception appears: Michael Manring’s captivating, lonely bass barely heard over Weingarten’s astral textures. “The Far Away,” which also features Manring, feels as a direct continuation of “Endless.” “Blue Rendezvous” completes the program with a (relatively) punctual 6:21 running time, and this is where Weingarten’s resonant slide guitar can be heard most clearly.
There are other profoundly talented guitar texturalists out there — Robert Fripp and Richard Pinhas come to mind — but perhaps none who can create such rounded, soft tones as Weingarten. When he decides to create his soundscapes with little or no augmentation from others, it’s a flair that can be appreciated and enjoyed at its maximum potential. An Endless Premonition is such a Carl Weingarten album.
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