Open to interpretation, ambient, and imperfect, the beauty of Helios‘ compositions emerge from a quiet darkness. As far as his profession can carry him, Keith Kenniff might best be described as nocturnal. Armed with a mini-cassette recorder, Kenniff has been creating Helios compositions between the corners of Oregon and Maine in such a light for 14 years now. Along the way, his cult following has expanded past Helios’ meditative gaze to embrace post-classical and shoegaze affairs under the monikers Goldmund and Mint Julep (alongside wife Hollie), respectively.
He’s also often been commissioned to compose for film and television, so it’s not as though Kenniff isn’t a successful composer. Rather, he is comfortably niche, which might just be where he should be. His latest Helios composition, “Seeming” is an ensnaring aural experience further enhanced by its visual presentation. Helios creates a tranquil bending of natural environments, much like how the forest presented may look through a kaleidoscope. Marrying the track’s warm synth tones and the wooded area’s natural hues as they twist and turn, we are given moments of a dark stillness before the light comes shining through. It makes for a unique meditative experience.
Helios’ latest album Veriditas releases 31 August via Ghostly International.