Mason Lindahl
“He can flip deftly between dense arpeggiated picking and stark, singular chords : “Sky Breaking, Clouds Falling” and Deep Wish” open with what almost resembles an unplugged Glenn Branca.” – WIRE
“The first thing you may notice about Kissing Rosy in the Rain is the sweep of its beauty.” –Pitchfork
Mason Lindahl is a guitarist and composer based in New York City whose work has been described as “unabashedly beautiful” (Aquarium Drunkard) and “balancing the romantic dynamics of flamenco and the meticulousness of Windham Hill with the unguarded qualities of improvised music” (Pitchfork).
Self-identifying with a feeling of void and the chaos of a never-ending stream of thought, Mason finds peace in nuance and more in less. His sound is stark yet warm, swirling yet still—“as if he were blowing out the final embers of some cave-dwelling flame, then tracing the smoke as it dances through the air” (Pitchfork).
His latest release, Joshua / Same Day Walking (Mt. Brings Death), recorded in northern California and Iceland with producers Robby Moncrieff and Sam Slater (Joker, Chernobyl), presents a dual portrait of his playing: Joshua, wooly and humid with overgrown Spanish moss, and Same Day Walking, windswept and beholden to the vast emptiness of Icelandic landscapes. Together they form a unified work that captures the complexity and malleability of his brusque, searching style at an aching new high.
The album opener “Joshua Under Water” straddles a line between hope and fear, carrying the listener like a lonesome cowboy finding water in the desert. Lead single “Little Sister” moves with glacial precision, shimmering atop synth atmospheres, “a glimpse of something sublime” (Hearing Things).
From the climactic arpeggios of Kissing Rosy in the Rain (Tompkins Square, 2021) to the haunted flamenco flourishes of his newest work, Mason Lindahl’s guitar compositions are both violent and gentle, gothic and transcendent. Described by Hayden Pedigo as “the greatest living guitar player,” Lindahl continues to craft an immersive, singular sonic universe that dares listeners to surrender.