CD, Meltwater Records, 2008
www.myspace.com/renfromusicspace
The collaborative work of two British musicians, Tim Branney and Atom-James Draper, “Mathematics” is an amazing opus – a collection of dreamy ballads in which field recordings and electro-acoustic elements are expertly manipulated and combined with very talented vocals into an exquisitely organic whole which seizes the listener’s attention from the very beginning. Throughout the whole album Draper’s delicate melodic patterns and Branney’s excellent singing constantly convey a feeling of optimistic melancholy, effortlessly guiding the listener through a dream-like world of micro-details – those very details that we take for granted in making our surroundings but to which we hardly give any thought in our daily lives.
Flawlessly flowing from beginning to end, there are, nevertheless, a few highlights to “Mathematics”. While these will surely vary from listener to listener, I have a feeling that most will refer “Broken Little Pieces” as the stand-out track and, at least for me, a track which makes the album worth it by itself. However, this track is merely the icing on the cake and there are plenty of other memorable pieces. From the modest guitar in “Telescope” and the ghost-like whispers on the edge of the fog in “Illuminations” to the dreamy shoegaze of “Map Of Missing Things”, it is easy for the listener to find himself drifting along, pleasantly lost in the meanders of Renfro’s aural labyrinth.
Renfro’s music in “Mathematics” must be appreciated like a fine wine: with time and without worries. As well as a great soundtrack for moments of solitude it is also something to be enjoyed in the company of a special someone. It is an amazing piece of work, surely bound to become a timeless and unforgetable classic for those who listen to it.
[9.5/10]
— Miguel de Sousa