SPELLLING THE TURNING WHEEL (Sacred Bones)
It took a pandemic for the Oakland artist Chrystia Cabral, who records under the moniker SPELLLING, to self-produce her most extravagant project to date.
The Turning Wheel is fleshed out by an ensemble of 31 collaborating musicians that utilizes a limitless assortment of vivid acoustic sounds. The release was delayed by almost a year. But maybe that was OK that crinkle gave way to a more affable rendering of such a heavier-than-air creation.
The 12-song double LP is split into two halves; “Above” and “Below.” Baroque textures dominate the former section, and macabre-like gothic tones fill out the latter.