ALBUM REVIEW: Night-time Stories – Jocund Forest

We all need a laidback soundtrack to while away an evening to sometimes. With a sliver of what’s been coined as ‘comfy synth’, JOCUND FOREST from Tennessee sprinkles a delightful soundtrack of nostalgia and imagination over any evening. Night-time Stories is a set of cute, comfy melodies to ease a study period, or to while away some time to with a good book or game.

Kicking off, Awake Amidst The Lunar Twilight is a really charming opener that sets the tone for the absolute chill-out you’re about to journey through. Whimsical, light synth-pipes totter along pleasantly, instantly igniting a sense of childlike wonder. Something of COLDPLAY’s Clocks lives very faintly within A Vibrant Nocturnal Woodland, its airy dream-state swelling over the keys in nostalgic little waves of melody. The dynamic range has a slightly condensed feel, which really leans into the old school gaming vibe. It’s like setting up a bygone console and being welcomed by cheerful soundtracks of the worlds inside.

If you’re in for the whimsy, then Picking Berries For A Midnight Pastry is a fun jaunt, a little juvenile to feel like ‘cool-chillout-music’; it’s more on the wholesome pastures vibes, a sort of Hobbit-y arrangement if you will. This isn’t necessarily a stand-out track, and yet it’s one that definitely gets stuck in your head, so it’s clearly done something right.

JOCUND FOREST manages to shift that sense of nostalgia into a more bittersweet place too, as Night-time Stories hits that level between comfort and longing. This is evidently the deepest part of the night time journey, as The Dim Light Of A Lantern Nearby too feels sleepy, the comfy layer of synths carpeting a delicate twinkle of keys. The haze of tape delay is so lovely here, adding just a little softness – you’d feel just right with a blanket around your shoulders, looking out at the twinkling stars with this lighting up your imagination.

The fitting swells and delays of Firefly Festival dances through, a beautiful little tune. With all this adventure, no doubt you’re feeling tired. Not least as it seems this journey has taken us through the night, and into a welcoming final track, A Gaze Upon The Glowing Sunrise. The album receives quite the fitting end here, a quiet and content tune that sparkles with the memories of the night gone by.

Night-time Stories is a very thoughtful and imagination igniting little album. It’s certainly cosy, and works within its own boundaries well. It’s niche and sweet, wistful and nostalgic, and in its own little world it’s got the right kind of quirks to satisfy.

Rating: 6/10

Night-time Stories is set for release June 7th via Fiadh Productions.