Ryan Farish
Daydreamer
Worldtrax Music
The first time I listened to Ryan Farish’s instrumental CD, Daydreamer, it already sounded familiar to me. I get a lot of massages and hang out in New Age bookstores now and then, so I figured it was a CD I’d heard while at my favorite day spa getting rubbed into blissful oblivion. But when I looked at the accompanying promotional material, I realized I’d probably heard some of these songs while checking my local forecast on The Weather Channel. No kidding. The song “Dream In Essence” is part of The Weather Channel’s Local Forecast program, while “Letting Go,” “If Only,” “Night Wind” and the album’s title track also have been featured on the Local 8’s. But Ryan Farish’s music is not just about the weather.
With its beautiful, evocative and consistently positive undertones, the fifteen tracks on Daydreamer take the listener on a journey beyond the standard sonic drapery of most New Age, ambient or electronic “background” music. Like a dramatic narrative encompassing a spectrum of musical feels, Daydreamer is all about a sense fluidity – moods, ideas and visions – that comes across perfectly in the carefully nuanced interplay of piano/keyboards, percussion and strings. From song to song, Daydreamer remains spectacularly melodic. No matter how stressed out you are from the daily grind, Daydreamer will take you some place far away right away. Highly recommended.
Ryan Farish: http://www.ryanfarish.com/