Eluvium emotionally tugs with earnest specificity on Virga II

You’ll quickly discover upon digging through Cooper’s discography that while his work remains consistent, he has no qualms veering off into other means of writing. While piano-driven albums have been his strong suit, his side project, Inventions, tends to map a wider scope of experimental ambiance. Here, though, Cooper’s efforts are firmly rooted in the art of repetition. But what gives these tracks their appeal is his ability to harness their shifting nature with so little and what we’re left with is an album not only challenging to break down, but one that has the ability to transport us to multiple worlds.

While tracks like “Touch Returned” are formed on a muted scale, others like “Scarlet Hunter” carry some menacing weight, showing it wouldn’t be too far of a reach seeing Cooper playing this type of stuff on tour supporting acts like Sunn O))). But while the loop is built around dense layers of unbroken movement, its entirety feels completely dystopian, even where its production leans in just enough to something alongside Wolfgang Voigt’s GAS alias. It’s Cooper pivoting away from his serene palette, opting for something dismal and gray in its place and the result is exhilarating.

But while certain moments can leave us vulnerable, Cooper can easily re-shift that focus and gift some of his most angelic work. Take for instance closing track, “Virga II.” Through its sweeping, soft-hued glow, it not only recalls similarities to what groups like Stars of the Lid achieved in the late '90s, but stands confidently as the album’s most pensive moment. Opener, “Hallucination I”, wavers like a mirage on the horizon. Adorned with amplified, tonal bursts, Cooper gingerly builds the track as though its composition is slowly being buckled by heat in the process. But even as the loop gently wanes in and out of focus, it’s a moment that somehow feels alive.

This is precisely what makes Cooper’s work so gripping. Not only does he encourage his audience to engage with his music, but he goes a step further, nudging us to simply fall into it. We resonate with its subtleties and we even challenge ourselves to pick apart and decipher its code. But we realize, too, that beyond these moments lies something more valuable – not just the act of listening itself, but an understanding that with essentially nothing, Cooper possesses the ability to tug at our emotions, doing so with a direct and earnest specificity.