A Son CD

With a solo discography that stretches back to the late 1990s, Mark Nelson AKA Pan American is one of Kranky's longest-serving artists. Much has changed since the sometime Labradford guitarist made his solo bow in 1997, but his ability to craft beguiling, otherworldly musical soundscapes remains. "A Son" boasts very few nods to his post-rock roots, with Nelson instead inviting us to drift through nine drowsy ambient soundscapes that sit somewhere between Jonny Nash's guitar-driven soundscapes, a folksy take on Americana and the slowly-shifting bliss of Italian pioneer Gigi Masin. It's an alluring and hugely enticing proposition.