Floes: Volumes I-IV by Tewksbury

This is a three hour album of nature-inspired music, at once monumental in ambition and lightweight in delivery. Spanning sixteen tracks (across four equally numbered volumes) Canadian artist Douglas Tewksbury shapes tape loops and lingering synths with a measured intonation, capturing the colours and sounds of an Arctic winter (bright, startling cold, slightly foreboding) while acknowledging human impact on earth (the Anthropocene). It's music for drifting to but not drifting off to. Moments of tension arise and diminish fluidly, like a wave washing on the shore or a flock of ptarmigan startled by the storm, but the languorous vibe quietly encourages contemplation.