‘Angel Wing’ by Penryn is a 5-track ambient instrumental EP that takes its listeners on a dynamic journey that ends in stillness. I had the chance to interview Penryn, where he talked about the EP. Here, he went through ‘Angel Wing’ track-by-track, his process, what inspired it, his journey as a producer and more.
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On ‘Angel Wing’
1. Congratulations on the release of ‘Angel Wing’! How does it feel now that the EP is out there in the world?
That’s very kind of you to say, thank you. It’s definitely a good feeling; music isn’t really finished until it’s out there meeting the ears of other people. It feels like a step forward from my first EP, and it means I can really get to work on some new tunes.
‘Angel Wing’: Track-by-Track
2. Could you tell us a bit about the EP? What inspired each track, and how it all came together?
‘She Could Not Hear the Singing’-’Freckles, Teeth, Gums and Blood’
Essentially, it’s a garage EP with skippy hi-hats and swingy drums, but there’s also a melancholic and introspective overtone across each track. The first track, ‘She Could Not Hear the Singing’, is a sort of loose crossover between the more synth-oriented tracks by the likes of Four Tet and Dorian Concept and the celebratory choral music of John Tavener. I wanted the sounds of the synth layers to come together to sound like a sort of choir.
Track two, ‘Amen Reload’, is the most Burial-esque from the EP. I was studying his album ‘Untrue’ very intently at the time and really immersing myself in his ability to communicate a sense of narrative with textures and the spoken voice. His music is very filmic in that way.
The oldest tune on the EP, ‘Freckles, Teeth, Gums, and Blood’, was inspired by a childhood memory where I knocked heads with another kid on the playground, sending my tooth through my lip and resulting in a LOT of blood! It’s all about a sense of play, the ruggedness of childhood, and the melancholy that comes with childhood memories.
‘Patheist Catalyst’-’Dream by River’
‘Pantheist Catalyst’ has an interesting story because it’s all about academia, really. I was writing my dissertation about spiritual aesthetics in film while making that tune, so my head was full of thoughts about art and spirituality being very close to one another. Spiritual art often employs very strange and textural elements to communicate a sense of the Other, so I wanted to make my drums feel like a kind of moving sculpture that used those kinds of techniques. I know it sounds strange, but I like to think in that way to coax out more interesting musical ideas from myself.
The last track, ‘Dream by River’, is all of those ideas but in their purest form. I set out to channel all of my influences but keep them as raw and unadulterated by style as possible, which in turn resulted in a distinct-sounding ambient tune.
‘Angel Wing’: Loose Narratives…
3. It felt like water had a strong presence throughout the EP’s soundscape. Was that something you wanted to include from the outset, or was it something that came together later in the process?
Water was a key source of inspiration from the get-go, for sure. I made all of these tunes in Falmouth, which is a seaside town in Cornwall, so I had a lot of exposure to the sea. I don’t like to get in the sea as much as I like to look at it, especially at night. I think looking out to sea makes you contemplate it very differently than getting in it. I also love finding nice spots along a riverside to listen to music, or just listen to the river. Sound and water have such a strong connection with each other, so it’s very helpful to think about water when making music.
4. There seems to be a loose narrative that threads through the five tracks. What element of the soundscape links these songs together?
Thinking with a storyteller’s mindset really helps me contextualize the emotion that I’m going for when making a tune. With this EP, there’s definitely a running theme of energetic drums juxtaposed with sweeping ambient tones. I wanted the EP to have a sense of drama with momentum while still feeling very reserved and withholding. Combining these elements of movement and stillness creates a feeling of longing at the heart of each track that I hope people can relate to.
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‘Angel Wing’: …and Inspiration
5. The final track on the EP, ‘Dream by River’, was a stand-out for me. Calm and still where the rest of the tracks felt dynamic. Why did it feel right to keep this track as the EP’s conclusion?
When I sent over the demos to Duckland, I was half-expecting some pushback on that track because it is a bit of a curveball, but I’m glad they liked it. It’s probably my favorite off the EP because, as I mentioned, I feel like it embodies the sentiment of the whole EP in its most quintessential form. I liked the idea of the EP ending with this note of rest before you do or listen to anything else—a little moment for the listener to take a few minutes for themselves.
I know ambient music isn’t for everyone, and I think there’s a misunderstanding about what ambient music is. For me, its primary function is to be useful, to give the listener a platform to achieve something for themselves, whereas most other types of music strive to be entertaining experiences. That’s by no means a criticism of music that seeks to entertain; I just mean that ambient music’s intentions are different. I also really wanted to release some ambient music, to tell the truth. It’s the music I listen to the most, and I was so excited to contribute to that genre.
6. You’ve said that this EP takes inspiration from films, personal experiences, and nature. What is the creative catalyst that brings these elements together?
I suppose it’s that age-old desire for a person to express themselves. I get a lot out of having a way to really think about how I feel about myself and how I relate to the world I see around me. Films are an immense mode of self-expression, and I find them hugely inspiring. The way filmmakers can evoke feeling by moving the camera—or not moving it at all—and pairing that with sound that elevates the whole scene beyond the real. I try to pretend I’m making a film when I’m making music because I think the language of film has a lot of transferability to the language of music.
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About Penryn
7. Could you give us an insight into your creative process?
Honestly, I don’t have a set approach when it comes to technique. There are definitely plugins and tools that I use almost always, but that’s more about the technical process than the creative. The one thing I do that could constitute a creative process is really trying to stay with an emotion, to live in it, while making a tune. No matter how techy the drums may get or how much layering there is to be done, every track has this amorphous and elusive genesis that holds it all together and gives the tune a reason for being. Holding on to that initial spark is the most important part for me.
8. Could you tell us a bit about your start as a producer?
I was the perfect age to be a dubstep kid back in the early 2010s, and that genre really grabbed me when I was a teenager. It was the first time I thought, “Wow, I want to make that!”. I’ve been trying to make tunes for about ten years, and I’ve had a couple of different names along the way and gone through different phases. It wasn’t until I went to film school in 2021 that I really started to find my voice in music. I had a few tunes I was making just for fun, and I sent them to my friend, Max aka Throe, who I had been DJing with since we were about 15. He had set up Redacted Records in Bristol and very kindly offered to put out my tunes. From there, I’ve just kept going—making tunes for the fun of it and finding the right people to release with.
A Message for Listeners and Aspiring Artists
9. Do you have a message for your listeners?
My music has no concrete message, but I would implore people to use and value art as much as they can in life. I don’t really believe in all this high talk of art making these huge, instantaneous waves in society—that’s all marketing. Art is a down-to-earth craft to be engaged with on a daily basis. Having regular contact with good art can make such long-term improvements to your life; it keeps reality in check.
10. Lastly, is there anything that you would like to share? Especially a message for artists and producers who are just starting out?
I feel like I’m just starting out myself, so I don’t know how much I can offer on that front. All I can say is make sure you’re doing it for you. Following a path that “guarantees success” is a recipe for a temporary existence in art.
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