Atlas: Year One

A sense of transcendent awe pervades Sleeping at Last’s Atlas: Year One, evoked with soaring melodic lines and shimmering, exquisitely layered arrangements. The work of studio auteur Ryan O’Neal, these 30 tracks (drawn from six previously released EPs) combine folk, classical, and pop motifs with haunting meditations on family ties, the wonders of the natural world, and the eternal nature of the Spirit. From the compassionate “I’ll Keep You Safe” and the nostalgic “Heirloom” to the billowing “Jupiter” and the thoughtful “West,” the album achieves a widescreen grandeur that doesn’t hide the fine details of O’Neal’s lyrical vision.