Hi Pal,
Welcome to another newsletter. I’ve been writing SSV for over a year now and even with the 10 different content categories I have, there are ideas that I still haven’t explored here. Bonus Stuff is an umbrella column that will house these ideas moving forward. Please tell me in the comments what you think about this issue.
You can check out the albums on all platforms using the embedded links on the titles.
In today’s edition, we will check out the discography of Civilized Creature, the brainchild of singer-songwriter, Ryan Lane. Civilized Creature is an experimental musical project that creates eclectic electronic music with infusions of various elements.
With such a rich and diverse discography, my job today is to tell you about every album he has released and at the end, I will give you my listening order. Please note that I will be skipping released EPs, singles and collaborations for this list.
The Bandcamp Era
Major streaming platforms would make you think Civilized Creature has just five albums. Imagine my surprise when I found out from Bandcamp that the project has released nine albums and two EPs. This is where we begin our journey today.
Beast of Formalities [July 2014] - Electronica
Naturally, the first thing that I noticed when I went back to visit this album is the vast improvement in the production quality of his albums today. Still, I wouldn’t say that this album is poorly produced. It’s a decent 7-track album that set the tone for albums to come. Although, I think it’s safe to say that it is the least experimental of the bunch.
A New Heart [June 2015] - Trip-hop, Electro-Funk
A little under a year later, we are gifted with A New Heart. This album has 11-tracks and is the first that really establishes the hip-hop leanings of Ryan Lane. While the first album leaned into the strings, this album opens up to interesting lead guitar licks and funky bass grooves. It’s also the album that begins the trend of instrumental tracks that showcase Ryan’s love for experimentation.
Permission To Feel [November 2015] - Trip-hop, Electronica
By this point, it should have become fairly obvious that Ryan Lane is a very prolific artist. This album has 8-tracks and I think it’s perfect in a lot of ways. If there’s any criticism I would lay at the feet of A New Heart, it would be how scattered the ideas tend to feel while listening to the album as a whole. Permission To Feel is concise and gets straight to the point, with a clearer vision and scope.
Tales & Tails [April 2016] - Experimental Electronica, Trip-hop
This is the album where Ryan Lane truly came into his own. The production and composition choices here are so different from its predecessor that it’s hard to believe that they are less than a year apart. The 10 tracks here are a promise of things to come and the changes here are quite welcome. I also must commend how his approach to spoken word rap had evolved by this point compared to the previous works.
The Streaming Era
Steadfast [February 2017] - Experimental Electronica
This album marks another transition point on Ryan’s journey not just because it’s the first available on major streaming platforms but because it feels like Ryan refining his ideas. Steadfast does not bring anything particularly new to the table, but it does everything that has been done in previous albums in much better ways.
Of The Uncaused Cause [July 2017] - Experimental Funktronica, Trip-hop
The bass grooves this one though. There are so many highlight tracks on this album and it’s certainly one of my favourites. One of the more noticeable things on this album — and the previous one — is how much the electronica elements are being focused on. On the first four albums, it felt like there was an underlying dissonance that attempted to feed as many creative leanings as possible. On these two albums, Ryan established electronica as the bedrock of his sonic escapades.
The Way Back Home [July 2019] - Indie Pop, Neo-Psychedelia, Experimental Electronica
This is the longest interlude we have between two Civilized Creature projects and it shows. Here, Ryan Lane is a totally different beast in more ways than one. It’s obvious that his production quality had improved in leaps and bounds but he also added new stylistic arrows to his quiver. This is his most lyrically sparse album and it is also his most experimental album to date.
Requited [March 2021] - Experimental Funktronica
After two EPs in 2020, Ryan Lane returned to his Funktronica and he sounds better than ever. It’s a concise album with many interesting twists and turns. The synth influences on this record are quite heavy but they do not feel overbearing. Stylistically, Requited is a better and more improved version of Of The Uncaused Cause.
Pression [March 2022] - Experimental Trip-hop, Chillwave, Downtempo
Pression is the most stylistically diverse album from Civilized Creature. This is due to the creative influences of the featured artists and Ryan’s willingness to continue to expand his horizons. It is also the album with the heaviest trip-hop leanings yet. The tradeoff is that the electronica elements are reduced.
My Recommended Listening Order
Tier 1
The Way Back Home [July 2019]
Requited [March 2021]
Of The Uncaused Cause [July 2017]
Tier 2
Pression [March 2022]
Tales & Tails [April 2016]
Steadfast [February 2017]
Tier 3
Permission To Feel [November 2015]
Beast of Formalities [July 2014]
A New Heart [June 2015]
That’s it, everyone.
See you soon!
Social Previous Photo by DeepMind on Unsplash
What’s your favourite album from Civilized Creature? Talk to me.