Review Text
Cassandra Jenkins's An Overview on Phenomenal Nature emerged from the blue earlier this year. With pandemic unknowns and political upheaval leaving most at frayed ends, the New York-born musician's assuring voice and expansive fresh take on songwriting created a much needed reflective space for listeners worldwide. As 2021 comes to a close, Jenkins revisits those flowing textures and refrains with (An Overview on) An Overview on Phenomenal Nature, a collection of previously unreleased sonic sketches, initial run-throughs, demos, and sound recordings from the cutting room floor that provided the scaffolding for what became one of this year's most critically acclaimed albums. When Jenkins visited Josh Kaufman's studio this summer, they opened up their original sessions to uncover the ideas that were shed in the creative process. This new collection isn't merely a retrospective; it acts as a clear-eyed addendum as well as a compelling origin story, coming to life as a subconscious companion to the original album.(An Overview on) An Overview on Phenomenal Nature bookends Cassandra Jenkins's musical output this year with nuance, coloring in the corners, and giving the listener another window into her ever-expanding world of chance encounters, experiences, and sonic textures. They glimmer like the sun's changing patterns on the wall as a new day gets going.
