Life, whether it runs eighty minutes or years, is a series of one turning point after another. We live in a constant state of becoming – becoming what we are and aren’t meant to be, becoming young, middle-aged, and eventually old if we’re lucky. The song lyrics for Silent Skies’ Dormant are full of those turning points. Tom Englund’s voice and words probe every corner of his life and psyche trying to identify where and who he’s been, where he’s going, and how he’s reached this place in his life. He honors listeners by sharing that journey.

His musical partner Vikram Shankar supplies the soundtrack for these meditations. His considered touch on piano, keyboards, and synthesizers color each mile of Englund’s inner voyage with melancholic shades. Even the album’s most hopeful moments, and they are ample, are alight with an undimmed sense of brittle victories.

“Construct” begins the collection. It sounds unvarnished and natural despite the synthesizers and keyboards. It has, as well, a strong sense of direction, but Silent Skies unfolds it at its own speed. You won’t hear any parallels with their contemporaries. Tom S. Englund’s vocal chops are the song’s heart and he conveys clearly thought-out sentiments with poetic grace that never over-reaches.

If “Construct” doesn’t make you an immediate believer, “New Life” will. It rips away any resistance you may have to the music following its opener thanks, in no small part, to Shankar’s emotionally piercing piano. It’s a beautiful, almost ornate blade that cuts through your defenses and skepticism. “Churches” has the same allure, though manifested in a different way. Englund’s voice reaches its fullest bloom yet with this performance.

“Just Above the Clouds” lives up to its ambitious title. This composition lifts listeners higher than any of its predecessors without relying on a single note of gimmickry or any pretentiousness. There’s a deeper focus on the vocals than previous tracks, but Shankar’s instrumental instincts are as sharp as ever.

The tandem dig even deeper with “Tides”. It is impossible to not be left a little slack-jawed by Englund’s writing skills and his ability to merge his ruminations with such an unusual musical backing. You will likely come away from Dormant a bit awe-struck by the emotional variety he achieves with his voice. It’s operating in a different realm here.

There are other nominal love songs included on the album, but by far the best track in this vein is “Light Up the Dark”. Englund writes about the source of his affection and devotion with clear eyes, never falling prey to hoary love song cliches, and crafts a masterpiece in miniature that you’ll want to return to again and again. He grounds it in the real world, as well, rather than some sappy romantic twaddle.

“The Last on Earth” has a haunted tone and the gravitas you’d expect for the album’s closer number, excepting the bonus tracks. It sounds written with a final curtain well in mind but doesn’t suffer in light of that. There’s no straining for profundity. Each of the three bonus tracks, all of them covers, are electrifying re-interpretations of the originals. “The Trooper”, however, is a stunning reformulation of the Iron Maiden classic that will leave you groping for superlatives. Silent Skies work like that. They comprehend the significance of our time on this earth, in this life, with artistry that few other acts can match.

Skyler Voss