Binaural audio might be a gimmick for some, but it’s a gimmick that the Toronto-based artist Wrené is ready and willing to explore to its full potential. She is a creator of Avant-garde music, a therapeutic listening experience that explores the limits of technology to make healing music. Starlight is the latest addition to her catalog.

 Described by her as the new-age genre of music, Starlight features Alpha waves, a 10hz frequency pulse that’s used in meditation to promote feelings of well-being. There’s so much more to it than that, or far too little, depending on how you look at this kind of thing. Because Starlight isn’t necessarily a song, it doesn’t even have drums, violins, trumpets, or triangles. It’s entirely electronic. An atmosphere. A sensation, and one that you’ll find a hard time describing. For me, as I don’t currently practice Yoga or any other form of similar holistic activities, I can’t really comment on the therapeutic effects of this music, its binaural audio, or its alpha waves, but I can vouch for its creativity, inventiveness, and the general neatness of the produced output. If I had to imagine a soundscape that utilizes binaural audio, features healing ultra-low frequencies, and is the product of a musical mind, something strikingly close to Starlight will come to mind.

 Perhaps one day I’ll get to fully experience this piece, the way Wrené intended it to be experienced, but for now, I’ll just say that it’s a cleanly produced sound that features intelligent sound effects, abrasive textures, harsh soundscapes, and it doesn’t end up sounding gritting, confusing, or unpleasant… but maybe a little desolate.

Everything here is long; from the name to the fun that keeps running in your head. “When the Night Was Just the Time When We Could Fall Asleep” is the latest release of rising singer-songwriter, producer, and musician Marshall Harner, whose music is a source of real and straightforward fun.

“It epitomizes what my life has been like for the past two years,” Harner refers to the album. “The songs are about past relationships, drug use, and my relationship with my family in very confession words, using the songs as a way to get some things off my chest.”

Harner’s massive talent for singing, songwriting, and production has made him reflect on the dark times and past events in his life brilliantly. A 17-track album that is over 1 hour and 5 minutes long, which gives us a heavy dose of musical diversity between the colorful layers of pop, R&B, and vibrant hip-hop in addition to a few electronic elements.

From the album’s first notes to the end, Harner takes us on a journey into a toxic life he wants to get rid of. He started with the song “In Too Deep” in which the piano keys take us to the deepest regions.

Harner’s mood lines are formed as he goes from the pervasive mists of “Good Times” to more vivid emotions in “Red Eyes” but the rhythm remains dominant. Harner takes us to a slower place where we find “Weather” and soon takes us to another, faster ether of “Nothing” continuing with the same pace until we reach “Done” and the beat begins another phase of slowing the tonic beats barely found in “Done” and “Fade” and “Show Me”.

From this point on from “Room To Grow” to the last song on the album “Running”, Harner returns to our ears once again with his smooth, deep vocals and the introduction of soft, touching instruments.

This album is a reflection of Harner’s sophistication and mastery of his explicit, writing, and confession-realistic musical instruments inspired by his own astonishing lyrical experience. Although the songs seem long yet, you won’t feel it because each song will immerse you in a different sense of creativity.