Aetherborne - Chime

Colour bass, as a genre, saw a massive blowup in the 2020s, and is brimming with potential. Who better than Chime himself, as the pioneer of the sound and the coiner of the term "colour bass", to put out one of the greatest albums in the genre?

As the final release on Chime's own label Rushdown before its indefinite hiatus, "Aetherborne" is a melodically-charged burst of colour—boy do I love me some melodically-charged bursts of colour—designed with the skill of a weaver, the creativity of an architect, and the worldbuilding of an author. The result is something I never quite thought any album would be able to achieve: a perfectly balanced tracklist packed with all-round engaging sound design and innovative ideas. Whilst it isn't super flashy, the first half of "Aetherborne" is phenomenal. You know when you read a descriptive piece that just blows you away? That's what this first half is: awe-inspiring and majestic; expansive and detailed; atmospheric yet hard-hitting; and with some absolutely brilliant tunes like "Bittersweet Butterflies". And it's all executed in such a Chime-like fashion, with micro elements and splashes of colour and sound design that sounds like a shattering rainbow. Though the vocal based tracks that punctuate the midsection feel a little less dynamic, they certainly serve the journey of the LP very well, and the transcension-like feeling that makes up the second half is pure bliss. The creativity does not cease, and neither does the worldbuilding—"Escape Velocity" has a roller of a drum n bass section, "Cloud Factory" sounds exactly like, well, a cloud factory, "Intermolecular Lullaby" is the role model microdrop song, and "Mindburn", oh, what an absolutely incredible finale, cinematic and intense and aptly bossfight-like with its neuro production. Euphoric in its final moments, the "Aetherborne" LP certainly deserves the joyous celebratory final two tracks it gets before the outro, for the one-hour-long fantastical journey it has just executed in a near flawless fashion.

The 100/100 rating speaks for itself. I'll admit, "Aetherborne" is not as banger-worthy as other albums, nor does it have the jawdropping moments that other albums do, but it's such a well-rounded project that it feels fit for a perfect rating. The transitions and the production motifs are brilliant and tie the album together really nicely, and still the experimentation is not lost on me; every track is different and there are a good enough variety of genre and style thrown into the mix, whilst still sounding cohesive. Yes, it draws inspiration from video games, but the final product feels less like a whimsical game and more like an expansive fantastical journey.