The Heavy Steps Of Dreaming: Coloured Vinyl LP

“The Heavy Steps Of Dreaming is the debut album from VancouverbasedMinor Pieces, a new songwriting partnership comprisingacclaimed singer / composer Ian William Craig and newcomer MissyDonaldson, a singer and multi-instrumentalist.

Retaining some of the textural play and experimentation of Ians solomaterial whilst channelling it squarely within the domain of tangiblesongwriting, the pair utilise guitar, modified tape decks, bass andsynths to fashion deeply-felt songs with their beautifully matchedmale / female vocals standing resolutely centre-stage.

Taking influence and inspiration from the likes of Low, Grouper,Mazzy Star, Portishead, My Bloody Valentine, Talk Talk and CatPower, The Heavy Steps Of Dreaming sounds at once familiar whilstforging something new, unique and beyond the sum of its influences.

Over the course of its 8 tracks – from the opening bars of Rothko tothe resonant closing lines of Shipbreaking – the duo move fluidlybetween voices, shift from moments of overwhelming power toperfect points of stillness; from acoustic balladry pared down to thesparsest of means to thick, tumbling swells of tape and electronics orbillowing synth trails. At both album and song level, its a work ofcontrasts and combinations; of broad, bold dynamics.

Masterfully crafted, the lyrics are rendered with an almost painterlyapproach and reveal a palpable joy in the richness of language andits capacity to conjure resonances, to hold moments close and topatch together meaning from lifes scattered detritus.

Whats forged is a kind of Alt. Americana filtered through aprogressive modern lens and the tactile, heavily processed tactics ofIans solo practice – an approach that links to the corrosive aestheticsof electronic artists like Fennesz, William Basinski or The Caretaker.

Puts ambient music, dream pop, and operatic vocals in a blender,and comes out with something thats very unique – Brooklyn Vegan

An atmosphere that flits between the overtly beautiful and thefrankly eerie – Clash Magazine”