Photo from Templo
2019 has been an extremely busy year for Denver-based producer Templo. In 2019 alone, Liam released two EPs, Space Trash Vol. II and I’m Pretty Much A Dinosaur, and several singles, “Gutter Holdup” and “Drone.” Performance wise, he recently performed at High Sierra Music Festival and Dancefestopia, did a co-headlining run with Brightside, and has several music festival performances left for the year. A couple weeks ago, he made a killer 46 minute exclusive mix with Beat Lab Radio.
Think that is a lot? Well, he’s not quite done yet! On September 6th, Templo debuted his newest creation Mountains Can’t Cry on Gravitas Recordings. This six-track ethnic and dub EP was definitely a new direction from his (and Gravitas’s) more recent releases, and it was inspired by world instruments and sounds in nature. With bass as the main ingredient, Mountains Can’t Cry is riddled with colorful melodies and smooth sounds that are variations of many genres and styles. There’s reggae, world, and experimental soundscapes that will appease any space bass fanatic.
After producing an array of diverse styles and genres over the past few years, [Templo] would always find himself returning to Mountains Can’t Cry whenever he needed to relax.
“Magnetics” quickly establishes the ethnic and reggae grooves that are to come as an experimental soundscape enters, riddled with a sampled atmosphere of those who inhabit the area. As the sun goes down and darkness overlays, “The Owl Watches” throughout the night, examining the mischief and mistreatment that has been done through a series of ominous strings. Cries from the mountain attempt to produce during “Shot In The Dark,” but they struggle to form once the psychedelic dub acoustics make their strike. Wandering along the Earth, “Tommy Heads West” to further detect world instruments that accompany groovy riffs and oscillation. “They Gone” introduces the meek weeps from sentient creatures that strive to vocalize on behalf of the mountain. As nature itself begins to power down in “RedShotScandal,” the tides abruptly turn as living creatures and world fusion collide to form a powerhouse of hope for the silent mountain.
Without being blatant, Mountains Can’t Cry is symbolic in many ways. To put it short, it represents our planet’s silent cry for help. There are small parts that help demonstrate this intention, as well. I’m not too sure if this is intentional (I might just have bad ears), but I can hear words such as “save me” in “Magnetics.” On one hand, the mountain is trying to cry from the mistreatment it is receiving. However, mountains aren’t sentient, and no one can hear it. Considering what has been happening in the Amazon recently, this EP is a cruel reality. Templo isn’t just releasing this EP and doing nothing though. 10% of net proceeds will be donated to Colorado 14ers Initiative to help clean up the mountains.
You can watch an interview that Gravitas Recordings founder, Jesse Brede, did with Templo, discussing more about the EP and its intentions.
You can catch Templo at Voodoo Music + Arts Festival and Resonance Festival later this year! Send me videos if you catch him playing Mountains Can’t Cry. You can stream and download the EP here.