In this era of highly produced, electronic, distorted, manipulated, manic and wild music, sometimes it can be a nice change of pace to sit back and listen to what two guys can calmly produce with only 10 strings.
The sounds that guitarist Lance Allen and violinist/violist Avery Bright—hence, Allen & Bright—create with their acoustic instruments may have more in common with the chamber music of Bach than much of the music made by independent, original musical artists in the digital age.
The duo’s 2020 EP The Afterglow, a quick six-track offering packed full of stringed beauty, may serve as suitable music to play at a tranquil massage spa, or even for the string music lover to fall asleep to; in no way does that indicate the music is boring. The instrumental proficiency is high and the phrasings contain some delicate, nuanced subtleties, but the The Afterglow communicates a sense of absolute peace, gentleness and serenity.
The guitar fingerpicking is active, though the pace of the chord changes is usually fairly slow, adding to the feeling of serene stillness. It certainly doesn’t promote hyperactivity or urgency.
Generally, the instrumental music will feature Allen, a recording artist and Smyrna-based guitar instructor, picking along steady 16th-note patterns, while Bright, an experienced Nashville session musician, adds a layer of slow, sustained violin soaring above with a beautifully captivating tone (with perhaps just a bit of layering in the recording process, allowing for multiple violin parts here and there).
“Falling Stars” takes the listener soaring. Following a tender guitar harmonic section, the music comes to a soft pause and then a strong, joyous violin melody uplifts to the heavens. This could be a climax in volume for the EP, at probably no more than a mezzo forte.
Allen & Bright certainly leave the fans of soft string music wanting more—15 minutes is not long enough for a proper meditation session!—but that can be a good thing for a local musical group. Again, the music probably isn’t suitable for getting hyped up before a workout session or boxing match, maybe for a relaxing cool down afterwards, but turn on a little Allen & Bright if you need a moment of restful peace.
Find The Afterglow on Spotify, Apple Music and other online platforms and more on the Middle Tennessee string duo at allenandbright.co.
