New World Voyage is the 2016 musical debut by Bill Crandall, under the project name Místochord. NWV is a concept album with a companion 43-page digital booklet of photos, drawings, and text that evokes what it would be like for first people to leave Earth forever for another planet - the human dimension of the departure and journey, as optimism fades and the enormity of irrevocable choices sets in.

The music is atmospheric ‘space folk’, contrasting acoustic guitar and soft melodies with dissonant electronic sounds as if the music is being created on the ship. NPR tweeted that it was "guitar pop for the Mars generation". Check out the article here:

Space Isn’t The Place: Místochord Scores A Fraught Migration To Mars

The digital booklet of photos takes a fictional, abstract approach to suggesting the journey. The crew’s log of short messages transmitted back to Earth - along with the song lyrics - help illuminate their psychological state.

Select Performances

Lost Origins Gallery (DC), Takoma Art Hop (MD), Bloombars (DC), Viaduct Arts Salon (MD), Songbyrd Music House (DC), Black Squirrel (VA), Takoma Porch festival (MD), Zed’s Cafe (MD), Sofar Sounds (DC), Open Circuits @ Rhizome (DC), Adams Morgan Porchfest (DC), Pink House (DC), FotoweekDC festival (DC)

Reaction

“A sound that reaches toward and past Pet Sounds.” - Neal Augenstein, WTOP radio
 


“Guitar pop for the Mars generation” - Ally Schweitzer, WAMU radio
 


“This is U.S. chamber pop of the very best sort, more trippy than ornate though. Crandall allows these tunes plenty of room to expand in a listener's mind and the overall effect is haunting.”
- Glenn Griffith, A Pessimist is Never Disappointed blog

“I could go on and on but let me just say this: Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Oops! Ok so I went on a bit... I love everything you've done with the mood and textures. Quite a feat and quite a treat!” - Lynn Veronneau, singer

“Who is still crafting concept albums - fully-realized musical visions that have the capacity to transport you to another place? That demand repeat start-to-finish listens? Bill Crandall, for one. Who has just released New World Voyage, his first solo album, complete with marvelously-realized album art. I downloaded it today and have listened to it twice already. This is a beautiful work.” - Philip Auerswald, author, The Code Economy

Bandcamp