Ryland Angel / David Merrill - Chant Electronique

In a time where the world is in a unified state of unprecedented chaos, 2020 has plunged humanity to ponder some of life's most important questions and triggered some of the most unpredictable of coping mechanisms. Many of us found peace through music, and Grammy-nominated British vocalist Ryland Angel turned to what brought him the most comfort - chanting psalms. He soon realized this meditative, sonic form of centering might help others, and began recording and sharing a chant per day when the Coronavirus hit it's first peak in April 2020. With a Gregorian plainsong tone, he brought to life psalms that transported us to a far-off European cathedral, giving us a unique aural space to embrace what was happening around us. Audio engineer, composer, instrumentalist, and producer extraordinaire David Merrill heard his colleague's daily psalms, and was struck with inspiration to add a most unconventional layer to the classical pieces perhaps only one in lockdown could dream up - electronica, using analog synth. Once he began to tinker, he realized the ethereal comfort and solace of Ryland's Gregorian-inspired improvisations combined with a deep, raw modernized twisted sound felt like the perfect antidote to the complex needs of the COVID-19 era listener. All developed remotely, Angel and Merrill continued this sonic journey and soon finished 10 pieces, collectively known as "Chant Electronique". There is one thing they know for certain, while COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on our society, it has no chance against creative collaborations like that of Angel's and Merrill's. Art will continue to prevail.