Lyrella – Cosmic Lark

Imagination, says Leonard Bernstein, is our ‘greatest treasure.’ With it, we have the ability to bring our dreams to life: we can, every day, dream our lives alive. The continual flow of imagination shapes all that we do and colours how we relate to everyone and everything around us. Our imaginations nourish us, enrich us, comfort us and propel us forward.

Music, perhaps above all other forms of expression, is an incredible pinnacle and a creative outpouring of human living. The blend of resonances, experiences, feelings, thoughts, nuances, and empathy is an inventive and magical cauldron where our imaginations sing, dance, and play without limits, boundaries, or constraints. If evidence is needed, I suggest you look no further than Cosmic Lark.

Conceived in 2023 by Cheryl Stringall, Lyrella is both an instrumental as well as an artistic project. To be precise, it is immersive ‘alchemy’. Cowritten (and produced) with Tony Lowe (ESP Project), the focus is firmly fixed on the emotional resonances made possible by storytelling and the evocative power of music to construct soundscapes capable of capturing the depths and the poignancy of moods, sounds, and feelings – the very things which make us human. I can confirm, without a moment’s hesitation, that the blend of alchemy used to create Cosmic Lark is phenomenal.

At first hearing, we encounter a spellbinding musical experience that lures you into gorgeous melodic soundscapes and envelops you with the most delightful symphonic textures. From the beginning, the music mesmerises and enthrals in equal measure. Yet the effortlessness of how it embraces and enfolds you is not only beguiling but also deceptive. To understand what makes it all possible, we need to delve deeper to appreciate the underlying elements that comprise this scintillating experience.

The first thing to be aware of is although the album consists of 8 tracks, they do not stand alone or in isolation. What we have here is more akin to an orchestral suite. Think Pink Floyd, Atom Heart Mother Suite (6 parts) or Gustav Holst, The Planets (7 movements). Each track is a superbly crafted individual movement, but they blend to create a cohesive whole and contribute to a more comprehensive musical experience.

Cosmic Lark does – or rather is – precisely this. The eight tracks are mesmerising symphonic movements which organically bridge from one to the other to form a majestic musical whole. You may not initially know it, but the experience you are encountering is precisely the structure and form that come from listening to a symphony.

Rhythm and Muse (Track 1) is the opening movement, setting the mood and the tone for what follows. The crackle of thunder is quickly followed by the sounds of sweeping rain, within which haunting pipes and the cadence of a tribalesque drum emerge. The piece segues to synthy melodies – shafts of sun breaking through the clouds. The hint of an ancestral chorus floats over the plains. A throbbing electro beat is accompanied by insistent key chirpings, underpinned by the constant threat of menace before the symphonic sun reappears. The rhythm pulsates: the muse dances, skips, flirts, and plays.

The second thing to note is that the tracks are all intricately woven musical tapestries in much the same way as an orchestral movement. Again, notice how this works. Each track shares common threads that weave in and out of the others – musical echoes and pulsing reminders of the journey we are on. Yet each track is its own tapestry, its own unique voyage, where the threads create delightfully nuanced musical textures.

Finding Deeper Levels (Track 4) illustrates this nicely. The same dark drumming and tribal beat remind us of the textures from the opening track. But novelty emerges within continuity. The keys are more accentuated and exploratory, pushing in directions that are organic and capture the attention. The music is almost free-form, guided by the spirit of the moment. It goes wherever the wind blows, instinctual and responsive, rippling on musical breezes, absorbed by the momentum and the thrill of where it is going—unrestrained and carefree.

Thirdly, keep an eye on the dynamism each track creates in light of its relationship with what comes before and what follows after. Each track moves our attention to something new, something different, something transformative of what we have already heard. In doing so, it gives the music a slowly unfolding, gradually evolving momentum which recalls the journey we’ve already experienced and then reveals something new, something different, to move us in new directions.

Spirit Horse (Track 6) illustrates this nicely. A ponderous, minimalist opening carries the sounds of previous tracks. Yet this is something different, something adventurous. Inquisitive musicianship, ‘letting go’ of discipline and structure, and thrilling to the feel of life itself. Yet the letting go is illusory. Ideas come and go, fleeting, cursory. Some hang around, curious about what they might become. Expansive filaments fire out in different directions to see if satisfaction ensues or if something even more adventurous is waiting to be discovered.

All the while, the filaments twist and turn, weave and entwine, and new musical tapestries evolve before our eyes. A sax? Surely not. Where did that come from? Unexpected. But delightful. It wants to play, to join the dance. The keys oblige. The footing is tentative and unsure at first. Yet the dance partners persist, gradually finding their synergy, wrapping themselves around each other. Magical.

But there is more to appreciate in the form of Stringall’s enchanting cover. Art, no less than music, is a symphonic expression and the beauty of the shapes, the entwining mosaic of colours, the blending, bleeding and blurring of boundaries is intoxicating. It is the perfect mirror of the music itself, symphonic creativity made manifest in visual form. Five limited-edition gift cards are available for purchase. Buy them while you still can. Frame them. Hang them on your walls. You’ll find yourself transfixed and lost in thought at all points throughout the day, such is their casual seduction and allure.

Cosmic Lark is an ingenious and fascinating cascade of musical imagination which frolics on the shores of jovial creativity and delights in the symphonic treasures it playfully presents to the listener. It is the richest of orchestral feasts, fashioned with deeply nuanced finesse and served with inventive elegance. From start to finish, it is utterly spellbinding.

TRACK LISTING
01. Rhythm and Muse (6:58)
02. Golden Threads (5:50)
03. Caves of Silver (8:55)
04. Finding Deeper Levels (5:17)
05. In the Crystal Cathedral (4:33)
06. Spirit Horse (7:29)
07. Waking to the Cosmic Lark (6:53)
08. Safe Havens (7:51)

Total Time – 53:46

MUSICIANS
Tony Lowe – Guitars, Bass, Keyboards, Drum Programmes
Cheryl Stringall – Additional Percussion

ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Sunn Creative
Country of Origin: UK
Date of Release: 28^th February 2025