Low Roar - ross. [Yellow]

Hushed, fragile and quietly devastating, ross. finds Low Roar's Ryan Karazija writing from his adopted home of Iceland, pressed here on yellow vinyl.

Karazija moved from California to Reykjavik and built Low Roar into a vehicle for intimate, slow-burning songs that blend indie folk, ambient textures and electronics. Released in 2019, ross. arrived in the same year his music reached a huge new audience through Hideo Kojima's video game Death Stranding, whose lonely landscapes suited his voice perfectly.

Tracks like Darkest Hour, Slow Down and Feel Like Dying wrap Karazija's soft, high voice in gentle synths, hazy guitar and spacious production, leaving plenty of silence between the notes. H.A.F.H. shows how much he could do with very little, letting a simple idea unfold patiently until it fills the room.

Listening now, after Karazija's death in 2022, these songs carry extra weight, yet the warmth in his delivery keeps them from tipping into gloom. There is comfort here as much as sadness, a sense of searching for connection in a vast, quiet place.

The yellow vinyl adds a small burst of sunlight to a record best heard late at night, headphones on and lights low, with nothing to do but listen closely and let it wash over you.