Ideas of Distance

Ideas of Distance

The solo project of Chicago’s Colin Caulfield, Young Man was born on YouTube. Caulfield posted his homespun covers of songs by contemporary acts like Animal Collective, Beach House, and Bon Iver, as well as more classic material from David Bowie and The Beatles. After those clips gained momentum he uploaded his original material, which led to a contract and a tour. Young Man’s 2011 debut album, Ideas of Distance, is the first of a trilogy where modern psychedelic architecture is built on overlapping blankets of ethereal guitar wash and multilayered vocal parts. Inspired by Wolfgang Voigt and Tim Hecker, “Enough” opens with gauzy ambience as Caulfield’s androgynous, hazy vocals recall early My Bloody Valentine recordings. Over this, he unpredictably stacks on sleepy beats and a distant trumpet that sounds sampled from a Spanish bullfight. The guitar swells on “Nothing” blend the washed-out distortion of ‘90s shoegazing with the astral ascensions of bygone space-rock bands like Hawkwind. The standout song “Tired Eyes” pulls all these textures and soundscapes into a gorgeous breakup song.

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