A finalist in the Best Electronica category of the 2002 New Zealand Music Awards, Rhian Sheehan's debut album Paradigm Shift has been re-released by LOOP Recordings Aot(ear)oa with two new additional tracks – "An Afternoon On The Moon" and "Connected".
Of late Paradigm Shift has been gaining increased interest from Europe and Rhian’s tracks are included on several renowned international compilations. He appears on the next release from the internally acclaimed Café del Mar. Café del Mar Vol.10 includes the track “Garden Children” and is due for world-wide release in May 2003. Rhian also has two tracks on ‘NZ in Dub’, a forthcoming release from the German label – Select Cuts.
On the live performance front Rhian and his 4 piece band are about to embark on an August tour of Europe and have confirmed slots at Popkomm in Germany, Fabric in London and Café del Mar in Ibiza. Recently in New Zealand Rhian has supported many high profile acts such as Morcheeba and The Orb.
Welcome to the world of Rhian Sheehan, where acoustic melancholy meets synthesised soundscapes in an electronic mind meld, taking the listener on a rich and rewarding musical journey. Organic instruments are married to a computer-based bed of lush layered sounds. Intangible emotion is summoned from synthesised sounds. Sampled soundbites and snippets of dialogue are contextually redefined. No more than an assembly of simple sonic elements, no less than an ultimately unique & personal musical vision – this is the Paradigm Shift.
Paradigm Shift offers an all-encompassing overview of Rhian’s broad musical vision. The opening sheen of the album’s intro is overlayed with radio coverage of the fall to Earth of the Russian Mir space station over the Pacific Ocean in March 2001, before the album kicks into life with a gasp and the crisp beats of synth-driven second track “She Walks Into Mine”. The following track is Rhian’s most collaborative effort yet – highlighted by the sublime vocals of Lotus Hartley (the vocalist on Christchurch dub artist The Nomad’s single “Where Are You?”, who also topped New Zealand’s Alternative Radio Chart early in 2001 with her own “Slumber), “Waiting” also features Wellington musicians Tehi (Fat Freddy’s Drop) and Darren Mathiassen (TrinityRoots) and benefits from the studio wizardry of producers George Nepia III and Jeremy “50Hz” Geor. Elsewhere on the album, further friends and family are enlisted for assistance – Devon Abrams of Shapeshifter plays saxophone on “Garden Children” and Rhian’s two month old daughter Niva has her say on “Childsmind”. “Air On A Bass String” and new track “An Afternoon On The Moon” are built upon wandering recycled jazz loops, while gentler moments such as “My Absolution” and “Journey To Wakatuhuri” strip the sonics back to lay bare Rhian’s acoustic roots. “Waiting” is reprised with the gentle drum & bass Sea Of Tranquility remix and field recordings gathered in New Zealand's scenic Abel Tasman National Park permeate “Connected”, the second new track added to the repress of Paradigm Shift, which now closes the journey more definitively.
Released in June 2001, Rhian’s debut album Paradigm Shift offers an all-encompassing overview of his broad musical vision, venturing from unaccompanied acoustic guitar tracks to lush, intricately arranged soundscapes featuring guest musicians from leading New Zealand groups TrinityRoots, Fat Freddy’s Drop and Shapeshifter. Its vocal tracks, collaborations with vocalist Lotus Hartley and all female Christchurch hip hop group Sheelahroc, were both radio hits. The track “Waiting” made number 1 on Wellington station Radio Active’s Top 50 songs of 2002 and stayed in the top ten of the national alternative charts for 2 months. Music media also acclaimed the album (see below), and tracks from Paradigm Shift have been licensed to many sources including Saatchi & Saatchi and Big Brother.
“We need to appreciate that we are intimately connected to the universe. That we are made of the same materials, just assembled in a different way. Everything around us, including yourself and the vast universe, appears to have been born together as one some 15 billion years ago, in a colossal explosion caused by a fluctuation in nothingness. The paradigm shift in human comprehension is the newfound knowledge that we are all one in the same, but all individually unique.” – Rhian Sheehan
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“Rhian Sheehan, with his seemlessly constructed Paradigm Shift, easily made Kiwi album of the year.” – Evening Post
An afternoon daydream on a space shuttle. – Grant Smithies, Sunday Star-Times
“A deft user, some might say master, of the sample, Sheehan uses the cries of his two-month-old daughter, Niva to lend some authenticity to the ominous "Childsmind", radio coverage of the fall to Earth of the Russian Mir space station, French language speakers, rain and a host of other tasty soundbites, that fit, perfectly into Sheehan's musical scheme of things. And this is what sets Paradigm Shift apart from other pretenders out there doing similar things, perfection. Not of the anally-retentive type, but of the sublime type, where every moment, every instrument, every empty space plays as equally an important part as the next. Sheehan is a musical master crafter.” – nzoom.com
Beautifully tripped out and blunted music which could equally become a soundscape for the background of a café or a direct one on one listening experience. Sheehan has crafted an album which flows like waves, slowly progressing from sound to sound over the course of the record. Cutting from the dark Portishead style through tracks such as “Waiting”, to smooth and polished hip-hop in “If I Gave You The Mic”, Rhian is definitely international quality downbeat. And judging by the liner notes he’s got his philosophy sorted too… nice. Smooth, sexy and cool. – Maxim, Underground
Sheehan boasts an acoustic flair as well as electronic. Paradigm Shift is a wealth of sampled wizardry plus good old-fashioned actual instruments, including the voice. Not reliant on the shimmery and bombastic elements of dance music, nor ham-fisted happy with sampling or loops, Sheehan stands alone with his flair for understatement and simplistic evocation with this offering, Paradigm Shift. – Craccum
“Rhian Sheehan’s fusion of organic, evolved musical styles has resulted in a truly rich, sweet album full of movement and depth. Paradigm Shift is a very special album, one that reflects the spirit of Aotearoa and our unique connection to this beautiful land.” – The Press
Paradigm Shift is a mighty work of love and mellow, fruitful electronica. Lush, emotional and expansive, the album has a downbeat feel – just sit back with sense alert, and soak up the vibes. – Brent Cardy, Real Groove
Lush futuristic soundscapes set up a finely crafted aural excursion into the ultraworld. – John Duguid, Rip It Up
As you listen you can feel your heartbeat slowing. – Aaron Watson, Capital Times
