‘Songs for Pittsburgh’ by Andrew Kruske
‘Songs for Pittsburgh’ is the latest release by Andrew Kruske, singer/songwriter of the duo known as Chameleon Treat. Musically, the album shares sonic qualities with albums by The Microphones and Broken Social Scene, and it draws upon a range of classic psychedelic folk records by artists such as The Incredible String Band, Vashti Bunyan and Fairport Convention.
Visually, the project finds inspiration in the pioneers of experimental projections like Jordan Belson and Elias Romero. Overall, this visual album presents a modern take on the 1960s genres of both psychedelic folk and liquid light.
Kruske set out to make a lo-fi visual album entirely produced by one person, with the end goal of presenting a cohesive half-hour of audio inseparable from its visual counterpoint. Though visual albums are a relatively new genre, they provide a unique listening opportunity in the digital era: sitting down and experiencing a full musical project from start to finish. Kruske hopes that “Songs for Pittsburgh” is a step toward more low-budget, self-produced visual albums that equally prioritize both the musical and filmic elements in unison.
