Transmeridian is the first album from Departure Lounge (ex-Bella Union) in 19 years. It features all four original members plus a guest appearance from legendary REM guitarist, Peter Buck. The surprise new album, named after the defunct "golden age of aviation" cargo airline for which singer/guitarist Tim Keegan's dad was chief pilot, is released on Violette Records. Originally scooped up by Simon Raymonde's Bella Union label following the self-funded release of their debut album Out Of Here (1999), Departure Lounge's sophomore outing, Too Late To Die Young (2002) was equally acclaimed. Calling a halt in late 2002, citing family and geographical reasons (drummer Lindsay Jamieson lives in Nashville, where their second album Jetlag Dreams (2001) was recorded), the four members remained firm friends and occasional collaborators, before reuniting in late 2019 for a few shows to support the digital reissues of their first three cult-classic albums. With no plans other than to make some new music, they set off for Middle Farm Studios, Devon. Tim Keegan (vocals/guitar), Chris Anderson (lead guitars/keyboards/bass), Lindsay Jamieson (drums/keyboards), and Jake Kyle (bass/guitar/drums) channeled their evident joy at being back together into a complete 13-track album, largely conceived and recorded in just one 24-hour session, co-produced by Peter Miles. Ranging from soulful Americana to piano and mellotron-fueled melancholia via pastoral musings on the nature of post-youth and eerie Spaghetti Western-tinged instrumentals, the next leg on the Departure Lounge journey is a multi-mood expression of pure artistic freedom. First single proper, "Mercury In Retrograde", covered in the twinkling lights of a music box Casio CZ101 melody, turned the clock back. The songs told the story of the band. Transmeridian has the same sense of deeply connected musical energy. The purring, campfire acoustica of "Timber" and "So Long" bear no obvious resemblance to the ethereal, end-of-the-evening, piano-led interlude "Paging Marco Polo", whilst the quasi-glam stomp of "Mr Friendly" would normally have no business sharing space with the strange, spacey "Gurnard Pines". Yet the journey's ebb and flow, accelerations and pauses make for compelling, grown-up listening. Australia, showcasing the chiming Rickenbacker 12-string of Athens, GA's finest guitar slinger, leaves no doubt that Departure Lounge's pop sensibilities also remain solidly intact. Citing their love of (and placing on record their debt to) influences including Robert Wyatt, Nick Drake, Talk Talk, Lou Reed, Arvo Pärt, and Cocteau Twins, the band's diversity of taste is reflected in the music they create.