โSketches #1โ by Carlos Sison steps into a quiet room where every creak of the floorboards and every breath of silence has something to say. Itโs lo-fi in the best sense, rough around the edges but warm, like a notebook full of ink stains and margin doodles. It leans into the rawness, and thatโs where its power lies. You can hear the single-mic intimacy, the Garageband fingerprints, still thereโs this sheen of sincerity that makes the whole thing glow.
Take the intro, โWatering Hole,โ barely a minute, but it lands like a sigh you didnโt know you were holding. Just soft strums, his deep, steady voice, and suddenly youโre suspended in a pocket of calm. Then, with โWoman,โ things bloom. He sings soothingly about his one and only over strumming guitars. Then, harmonies start singing along with him as he sings the choral refrain, โwoman,โ creating an expansive, soulful, communal spirit. And then thereโs โRoom for Heroes,โ maybe the heaviest hitter of the bunch, where his weathered and tense voice comes clean and clear, thanks to that close mic. He sings tensely, melancholy and somber, as if he is deep in thought.
What ties it all together is how unguarded it is. You can hear the influence of folk giants, with Nick Drakeโs ghostly calm, Jeff Buckleyโs emotional reach, and even the layered warmth of Fleet Foxes. Sison, with the legacy of his influences, is carving out his own corner, one where Filipino folk sensibilities brush up against Western alt-folk. The political origins of his songwriting linger beneath the surface too, as you catch flickers of frustration, tenderness, and longing.
All told, Sketches #1 is an excellent debut that sets him apart. The real masterpiece is still sketching itself out. So stay tuned to Carlos Sison.
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Review by: Naomi Joan