I heard Cornelius for the first time about 5 days ago. It was one of those moments that you realize at the time is life-altering, although you don’t quite know how. Like when I heard “Lady Madonna” for the first time. Or when I bought Pet Sounds.

On a whim recommendation I checked out Cornelius’ stuff, knowing nothing about him or his music prior. It was an impulse thing - I bought Fantasma and Point online and got Sensuous from a friend. 3 days later, I proceeded to re-buy Fantasma and Point and purchased Sensuous for the first time.

Cornelius’ music is incredible. Mind-blowingly beautiful. It is to me, near-perfection. It’s everything I know and love about music reinvented anew. The melodies range from the most harmonious to the near cacophonous. The textures, similarly, run the gamut from placidly soothing to viscerally harsh. It is fully revivalist while being totally and completely new and unheard.

Cornelius is the type of artist I attempt to study with scientific precision, trying to hear and see the music in terms of all the building blocks that create it. Each individual sound is like a little strand of DNA - completely unique and utterly mesmerizing on its own, but even more mind-blowing in the context of the overall creation. This shit is living and breathing - it’s fucking alive.

I don’t know how much I can implore you to get a hold of his albums, all of them, ASAP. Below are two tracks that seem particularly stuck in my head, although hearing them detached from their musical compatriots is a large disservice. “Star Fruits Surf Rider” is like breathing in the freshet of air, completely rejuvenating. “Sleep Warm” on the other hand, which is the finale to to Sensuous, is the most beautiful of lullabies. These are albums that need to be experienced in their entirety. Start to finish. Pre-Cornelius + post-Cornelius are phrases that have been bouncing through my mind lately…

Cornelius - “Star Fruits Surf Rider”

Cornelius - “Sleep Warm”