If you are looking for a calm and peaceful place to shut out the noise and discord in the world these days, I have just the thing! Vin Downes and Tom Eaton’s new album, Until the Light Was Gone, offers almost an hour of warm, soothing sounds to wrap yourself in as you let go of any stress and allow yourself to just breathe. Created in the studio, the album “celebrates the fading of the day when the world gets quiet and the empty spaces can be heard…. It builds from solo guitar into multi-layered rhythmic atmospheres until it returns to the simplicity of solo piano, ending its journey in the darkness before dawn.”

Vin and Tom have worked on many projects together over the past thirteen years, but this is their first album as a duo. The album actually began as a solo electric guitar project for Vin with Tom producing it at his Sounds & Substance studio, but the more they worked on the music, the more they could feel a shift in a different direction and they decided to go with it. Lucky us! Although you could probably get away with calling this album ambient, it is much more than that. Quoting Tom Eaton:

“We have very similar musical sensibilities but have different vocabularies… we both love really emotional music, and love harmonies and cool voicings. We are also big fans of clear melodies, and that's one of the things about this record that we like so much, that it's really intentionally melodic while existing in a deep ambient space. It feels familiar in some ways because we're using pop structures sometimes, but also in ambient music, typically with huge reverbs and not always a lot going on, there isn't always a focus on melody and structure. I think that's why this record hits a sweet spot for both of us and I hope that comes across in the listening!”

And indeed it does! On the album, Vin plays electric and high string guitars. Tom is an incredibly versatile multi-instrumentalist and plays piano, Rhodes, bass, synths, programming and additional electric guitars. Jeff Oster, a frequent collaborator, plays flugelhorn on one track.

Three singles have been released ahead of the full album: “The Weight of Your Whisper,” “The Clearing,” and “A Sign,” and all three have videos on YouTube. They are an intriguing introduction to the full album!

Here are some thoughts about a few of my favorites of the fourteen tracks. The album begins and ends with “Dawn Delayed.” The first version is electric guitar and the “Reprise” is piano, and both include other layers of sound. “Automat” has a dark, mysterious feeling expressed with soulful guitar and atmospheric effects. I really like the gentle hand percussion and shimmering background sounds in “The Weight of Your Whisper,” too. “Kaleidoscope” features Jeff Oster and his flugelhorn in addition to the electric guitar, light percussion and keyboards - very beautiful! “Disappear Into Winter” is very chill - in more ways than one! The stark, icy atmosphere is quite ambient, moving slowly and dreamlike. “A Sign” has the gentle sway of a romantic slow dance - perhaps in the moonlight. My favorite track on the album is the very mysterious “A Shadow in the Window.” The piano carries the lead in parts of the piece, which is more orchestrated, rhythmic and strongly melodic. “Hope in an Endless Sky” has the warmth and comfort of a lingering hug. Warmly expressive and optimistic, it’s another beauty!

Until the Light Was Gone is truly exceptional! It will be released on May 29, 2026 and can be pre-ordered now from TheSpaceWeLeftEmpty. (CDs and downloads), Amazon, Apple Music/iTunes and many more. More links will be added as they become available. Don’t miss this one!!!