1st Base Runner
Seven Years of Silence
(1st Base Runner)

Austin, Texas-based ambient-industrial music project, 1st Base Runner, is musician Tim Husmann’s baby. He plays all the instruments here and sings on his debut album called Seven Years of Silence.

A low bass plods under metallic strikes, with Husmann’s near chanting vocal play on opener “Break Even” while a shaky slower metallic guitar plays on the next tune, “Only One.” This song’s descending key line reminds me of Angelo Badalamenti’s work with David Lynch and sparse production under Husmann’s breathing works quite effectively.

Husmann seems to find his sweeter voice, still breathy and slightly unintelligible as he often is here, on the slowly poignant reveal of “Escape.” He manages some very sweet harmonies that bring this tune to life when he’s repeating the same lyric over and over on what is the shortest tune of these eight.

A jingle echo piano sound and pulsing bass beat inform “Some Reasons.” This is another one where there is an interesting layering of vocals, not harmony exactly, more spoken word with singing. A simple synth line tops the mix, lifting the song from being a drone. And we get another great harmony (shades of Radiohead here?) on the click and low plumbing of “What Am I?”

“Ocean,” with its running synth roiling, is the longest tune here and ends Seven Years of Silence. Again, there’s metallic guitar hits, swirling synths, and solid harmonies in a song that rises to big drama near its end. It’s a great ender to a moody, rich album by Tim Husmann’s Base Runner.