David Rupley - Signs You're Alive

David Rupley

Signs You're Alive
​self-released; 2016

3.6 out of 5

​By Matt Jensen

Signs You're Alive is the seventh album by David Rupley but only his second that is electronic. Rupley studied Film Scoring at Berklee and it makes sense once you delve into the soundscapes that he makes.

In a general sense the songs are lush, atmospheric and usually meld into some sort of hypnotic groove. It’s the type of music you can just put on at a party and people could dance to it or let it reside in the background during conversation.

The opener “Beta Lights” starts and ends with the same essential beat but it's everything else such as the arpeggiated synths, pads and other effects that are the ear candy. As the song progresses more layers are added and his thematic proclivities start to shine through. I could imagine this music being used in a Sci-Fi movie.

“Naked Eyes” bares resemblance to Boards of Canada in that some of the sounds have a dissonant, alien-like quality. Against some of the more dissonant noises are warm pads, which create an inventive dichotomy. Like many of the songs to come there aren’t any drastic changes. It’s more about the mood he creates.

“Blue Night” is contemplative piece that indeed feels blue and melancholy while “Rushmore” has an almost worldly feel. As the album progresses there are some more notable tracks such as “Ice Factory” and “Night Owl” but bringing up individual songs almost feel counterintuitive.

Signs You're Alive is an album you can just hit play and let it ride. The highs and lows between the songs are marginal and in a lot of ways felt like they bled together. On top of that the songs are ones you can actively listen to if you are interested in nuances and subtleties that Rupley implements or at lower volumes makes excellent ambient. Those are two reasons that you should take a listen.

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