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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nMost of us are vulnerable to occasional existential musings, but nothing evokes this type of thought quite like spending time around a young child. Children are infinitely inquisitive, and their \u201cwhy\u201d questions can cut unexpectedly deep. Aur\u00e9lien Regert<\/strong>, in his new solo project Of Mountains and Seas<\/strong><\/em>, records\u2013 sonically and emotionally\u2013 a personal reflection on how having a son reshapes his relationships to the universe and to the passage of time.<\/p>\n Of Mountains and Seas<\/em> is a true concept album. Beginning with \u201cDeparture\u201d and ending with \u201cHome,\u201d the self-titled debut illustrates the father-son dynamic from both perspectives on either side of the relationship as it unfolds over time. The music video to \u201cCygnus,\u201d referring to a constellation in the shape of a swan, depicts Regert\u2019s seven-year-old son who asks, \u201cDad, what do you see when you look at the stars?\u201d \u201cStories,\u201d Regert replies. As the track unfolds\u2013 airy and distorted, clearly influenced by the artist\u2019s post-rock background\u2013 the child sits outside in the dark, innocent curiosity guiding him as he manipulates synthesizers, while a halo of flickering lights surrounds him.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe Traveller, I\u201d is choppy and dissonant, as father and son both enter unfamiliar territory on their respective journeys. \u201cPegasus\u201d shimmers and twinkles as it drifts through a labyrinth of stories, from ancient mythology to the fantasies the child makes up as he stargazes. A tonal shift towards somber meditation occurs in \u201cAndromeda,\u201d which builds up until a beat drops. The percussion is slow, heavy, and relentless like the passing of time. The title \u201cAndromeda\u201d refers to both a constellation and the galaxy closest to our own. Fittingly, this climactic track is the longest and most dynamic on the album. Visible from Earth with the naked eye, the Andromeda galaxy will likely collide with the Milky Way within 10 billion years.\u00a0<\/p>\n Regert samples a real conversation with his son to create \u201cDad are we alone.\u201d In French, the two discuss planets and how time warps in black holes. Radiant, heavenly instrumentals layered over the spoken snippets enhance the emotionally moving dynamic between the artist and the bright, curious child. A tender illustration of the father-son relationship, this track seems to answer the boy\u2019s question by emphasizing that\u2013regardless of what lies beyond\u2013 we are most certainly not<\/em> alone here on Earth. The guitar arpeggios on \u201cThe Traveller, II\u201d sound less ethereal and more human as they transition listeners back from the celestial world and into the last track, \u201cHome.\u201d Birds chirp as the album fades out\u2013 a final reminder that one needn\u2019t go anywhere to find the simple beauty of ordinary terrestrial life. (Maya Merberg)<\/strong><\/p>\n