About

Whether solo or in collaboration with Jake Fugar as Angophora, Max Santilli tends to pursue the ineffable in his music. Last year’s Surface invoked his artistic forebears - Michael Bierylo, Steve Hillage, Miguel Herrero - in tones and textures evocative of ancient ochres and tropical dusks. Like them, his music has always been diffuse, almost otherworldly, the edges between his guitar, drums and synthesizer soft, as though worn away by erosion. 

In Circles may be his most ethereal effort yet: a softly spun soundscape that feels cloaked in mystery. The woozy synths, signature guitar-licks, chimes and field recordings create a mirage-like effect, making it impossible to discern where the music ends and nature begins. From the birds on ‘Dusk’ to the hypnotic synth passages on ‘Confined’, the album is an exploration in stillness, the songs suggest a cool summer breeze whistling through the outback, or the whir of Eucalypts at night. 

Like all of Santilli’s musical output, In Circles feels indebted to the land in which it was conceived. ‘Dusk’ opens the album with a delicate flurry of chimes and bird calls, before moving into a sleepwalking rhythm courtesy of a didgeridoo. Santilli’s guitar is noticeably absent from the track, as though he’s simply an observer to the sounds around him. It’s an immersive and hypnotic introduction, and it sets the tone for the rest of the album. – Low End Theorists