The Gleam cover

The Gleam

Released

Several reviews have pointed out the similarities with ECM recordings—the digital reverb, the use of silence, and the ceremonial pacing. That’s all true. Jiha uses various Korean reed and string instruments (the piri, a type of oboe; the saenghwang, a mouth organ; the hammered dulcimer known as the yanggeum; and the glockenspiel). To create the reflective lights tipped by the title, Jiha makes gestures appear, recede, and then repeat. The spaces are as vivid as the presences, and the album has a rare cumulative force that makes it more appealing as it goes. For a fairly sparse album, this has massive narrative weight. I can’t really take it off once it’s on.

Sasha Frere-Jones

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