Cole Pulice : Land’s End Eternal
Cole Pulice’s Land’s End Eternal arrives as a lush exploration of space—not the galactic kind, but a musical one, somewhere between ambient jazz and experimental. The Oakland-based saxophonist, known for creating immersive atmospheres, invites listeners into a world brimming with delicate vibrations and a serene yet unfamiliar kind of beauty. And the album marks a moment in Pulice’s evolution as an artist, notably with the introduction of the electric guitar, something never previously employed in past work.
Presumably named after the San Francisco landmark, Land’s End Eternal is a perfect homage to its namesake, a place where the earthly meets the ethereal. It feels right for an artist whose collaborations have included a heady mix of artists such as Nat Harvie and Lynn Avery and whose 2020 LP Gloam was a diverse showcase in styles. From work with Black Market Brass and other projects, Pulice’s music has always captured the meditative moments that arise and then coalesce into something new. The Bay Area itself, where the album was created, offers its own sonic heritage in the form of visionary artists like Pharoah Sanders and Terry Riley, and Land’s End Eternal taps into that legacy while carving out its own presence. The influence of these and other figures can be felt in Pulice’s ability to stretch the boundaries of jazz, ambient and experimental music, offering up an album that is innovative and thoughtful.
Opening with “Fragments of a Slipstream Dream,” Pulice sets the tone for the album’s hazy, hypnotic journey. It’s haunting, with vibrating saxophone lines that ripple across the ether. You might catch wisps of a distinctly John Coltrane-esque vibe, yet stripped of conventional form. The track’s dissonant fragments and jagged edges settle in your ears with a sense of decay that is simultaneously unsettling and mesmerizing. Pulice has well-known for singular electroacoustic manipulation of the saxophone, and here those stylings are woven with glitches and droning textures. In this opening song, sound becomes fluid—morphing and melting away into the showcase suite. If you listen carefully, you will notice how this piece serves as both a bridge to Land’s End Eternal‘s new influences as well as is a thread that connects to Pulice’s prior works.
One of the album’s most captivating features is the three-part suite, “In a Hidden Nook Between Worlds.” Parts one to three are a radiant exploration of the interplay between saxophone and electric guitar as well as a multitude of effects and layers. Pulice’s approach to the guitar is refreshingly unburdened by tradition, described in some materials as a “child’s brain” approach. That’s an apt description because there’s a playful curiosity in these pieces, especially in Part I, where the guitar’s pastoral strums intertwine with the saxophone’s gentle, low melodies. The resulting composition feels like the slow, deliberate unfolding, with textures that roll like shifting clouds. As the suite progresses, the universe herein expands, from the quiet moments of Part II to the warm, inviting melodies of Part III, where the instruments find an evocative balance, neither fighting for attention, but instead orbiting around each other in a tender, buoyant harmony. This is ambient that is creative and it is sublime.
Pulice’s experimentalism is not confined to the use of guitar. “In This & Every Life” highlights the composer’s adeptness at blending disparate elements to create a piece that is both lofty and grounded. You might notice a field recording of a piano merges with a studio-recorded version of the same instrument. The result is a sound that feels deeply out of time. The saxophone, recorded up close and personal, hovers above the plunking piano. Your experience is one of stepping into a fragile yet emotionally resonant track.
The album culminates in the gorgeous “After The Rain,” a pastoral chamber-jazz piece that encapsulates the overarching theme of Land’s End Eternal. Featuring brass, guitars and the ethereal voice of Maria BC, the track is an elegant yet sweeping reflection on transition. Pulice’s saxophone gently guides the song through its undulating movements. The atmosphere here is relaxed, but never passive, with a quiet urgency that calls the listener to remain present.
With Land’s End Eternal, Pulice invites us to step into the endless possibilities of sound, where experimentation does not sacrifice beauty and ambient does not mean sleepy. This is music that evokes both reflection and a sense of wonder, offering a glimpse into a world that is both alien and intimate.
Label: Leaving
Year: 2025
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