Hymns of the Sun

‍Album Review - The Walleye - April 2022

I think I recorded my first album in 1988 when my friend brought over a 4-track," says musician Darren Foley.

Since then, he has amassed over nine albums through his musical career with the various bands he's performed with. He began work on his debut solo album, Hymns of the Sun, in January 2020 and released it on February 13 of this year.

The album features 11 tracks written and recorded by Foley in his studio attached to his home, called Albert's Workshop Records. Although the production process was two years, Foley says he was delayed by six months due to technical issues, and that "everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong," so he "recorded sporadically." His commitment to overcoming each hurdle leaves a sense of catharsis in his music. The sun plays an integral part in Foley's imagery, which is heavily influenced by nature. His interest in cymatics-the study of the vibrational phenomena based on the idea that the sounds and vibrations around us also create and mold the shapes around sled him to the album's title, along with the tracks "My Setting Sun" and "So That I Radiate Sunshine".

"You know the sun is the anthem of our lives, and these soundwaves are the connection between us and nature," says Foley.

A mixture of dream pop and singer-songwriter, the acoustic album evokes images of an endless summer night and a never-setting sun, and features lyrics that float through the music with a groove that very much reminds the listener of something off a Beatles album. Categorized by different emotions, each song follows an emotional state, whether it be love and loss, isolation and fear, the future, or the process of sobriety. Foley says the album works "hand in hand with nature" and is meant to be listened to while on a walk or sitting around a campfire.

Like many artists during the pandemic, Foley took the time alone to internalize and translate his ideas into the album, and he also wanted to produce a project from start to finish on his own. Inspired by artists like Rick White who boast self-sufficiency, Foley even designed the album's cover art, painting a wintry sunset as he looks onto the horizon using gouache paints. He also filmed the music video for the track "Cloudy Day," available on YouTube.

Foley hopes to perform live this summer and is currently working on creating vinyl versions of his album to add to his growing collection. You can find Hymns of the Sun on Spotify, SoundCloud, Bandcamp, and YouTube.