London, 2026

​

Forgotten Fields approaches creating music as one part of a wider artistic practice. Across his work as a composer, poet and graphic artist, there is a consistent desire to blur disciplines and allow each medium to inform the next. Rather than drawing clear boundaries between them, he builds a singular artistic language in which image, text and sound coexist naturally. At the centre of this practice is a fascination with atmosphere, nature and the idea of homecoming — themes rooted in his childhood in South Africa’s Western Cape and his continuing sense of longing for the landscape he grew up in. On this most recent self-titled re-release on NOOX, Forgotten Fields explores ambient music through a focus on wordless poetry, creative instrumental colour associations and a thoughtful balance of sound and silence.

 

He once again surrounds himself with a small group of trusted collaborators; the project features Cristiano Castellitto on drums, Logan Dougherty on woodwinds, Chris Lateano’s words and Lofthill’s vocals, and Nick Scallorn on guitar; each contributing to the rich and understated palette that characterises Forgotten Fields. Each performance is woven into a broader musical landscape — where texture, atmosphere and narrative take precedence over virtuosity in an understated aesthetic, inviting the listener into a world that unfolds patiently, revealing its details with each successive listen. The combination of digital layering and organic instrumentation is particularly important to Forgotten Fields’ approach, with synthetic textures interacting with the character and imperfections of live instruments.

Rooted in Forgotten Fields' passion for music, poetry and the natural world, this album takes its title from a self-penned poem that serves as its thematic foundation. Each of the six compositions corresponds to one of the poem's verses. Drawing inspiration from the remote landscapes of South Africa's Western Cape, the work is both wistful and reflective, vividly recalling swallows in summer and windswept fields. The poem itself expands on an idea that has been central to the project since The Zephyr and the Swallow: a boy chasing a swallow through a field, and later returning to that memory as an adult, recognising in it a sense of where he belongs. The album therefore becomes more than an observation of nature; it is also an exploration of memory, distance and the pull of home.

Forgotten Fields opens with “Verse One (Where Zephyrs Blew)”, a simple call and response first on piano, then guitar and keyboard, with the pattern passed between the instruments and developing ever so subtly through their conversation. There is something almost cinematic in the way the different voices enter, establishing the landscape without rushing to define it. “Verse Two (Running in the Wild)” introduces the drums, continuing from the remnants of the opening pattern but now developing through woodwinds beneath a pulsating, almost African-style drum, without cymbals. The voice eventually returns alongside the guitar in a similar call-and-response fashion, before the drums take over the lead role and the piece closes on the flute.

“Verse Three (Out of Sight)” opens with a keyboard melodic fragment reminiscent of Eno’s ambient works, slowly evolving into the thoughtful continuation of the poem while once again exploring more contemplative soundscapes and layers. There is a particular sense of distance here, with the music appearing to hover rather than move towards a fixed destination. “Verse Four (A Distant Reverie)” deepens the reflective quality of the previous piece, allowing space for introspection and, somehow, an escape from or an immersion into the music. Layers of synth gradually take turns, generating new streams of sound.

Forgotten Fields’ choice of instruments and sounds carries a certain nostalgia, looking back towards the early developments of keyboards and synthesisers. The almost Mellotron-like sounds of “Verse Five (Waving Grass and Swallow Chases)” reinforce this feeling, while the more modern, crystal-clear guitar sound of Scallorn brings the music back into the present. This mixture of synthetic and organic sound is central to the project’s identity: the technology is not used to obscure the natural world, but to recreate an emotional impression of it. Finally, “Verse Six (Under Summer Skies)” returns to the harmonic structure of the opening verses. Its quiet, steady pulse and spoken words bring the release to a gentle conclusion, completing the cycle established by the poem.

 

Across its six verses, Forgotten Fields gradually reveals the distinctive balance at the heart of Forgotten Fields’ work: music that is understated but rich in detail, rooted in poetry and the natural world while remaining open to experimentation. The project’s recurring ideas of flight, landscape and homecoming give the music a sense of continuity that stretches beyond this particular release, connecting it to the wider body of work that began with Airship and The Zephyr and the Swallow. Rather than simply translating the poem into sound, Forgotten Fields creates a space in which the two can exist alongside one another, allowing the listener to move between image, memory and atmosphere. The result is a quietly immersive work that feels less concerned with making a statement than with creating a world — one that, much like the fields and swallows that inspired it, lingers in the imagination long after the music has stopped.