Sleeping at Last is the project of Wheaton, IL based songwriter/composer Ryan O’Neal. What started as a three-piece alternative band has progressed into a mellow musical endeavor of sweeping soundscapes and introspective lyrics full of just as much beauty as the music. O’Neal abandoned the industry standard of releasing an album every other year with the announcement of the Yearbook project, which involved an EP released each month for a year. Now, O’Neal deviates further with the Atlas project. Here’s an excerpt of his explanation of the concept, taken from Sleeping at Last’s website:

atlas is an ongoing series of eps. the keyword there is “ongoing.” unlike yearbook, there is no end-date in mind for this project. atlas will be approached one year at a time for as long as i see fit! i have about 3 years+ already thematically mapped out and i’m so so excited about the concept/direction that will unfold as time moves on.

CONCEPT/THEME

i wanted to create a project that allowed me endless room for exploration musically and thematically, while still coloring within the lines of an overarching theme. atlas gives me exactly that. the theme of “atlas” is the exploration of the origins, emergence and experiences of life. i like explaining this concept with a visual:

… imagine a camera lens pulled back as far as possible away from the universe. now imagine that lens being pulled closer and closer to us. that is the heart of atlas. [our emphasis added]

as the lyric in the opening track “overture” points out: “the universe began with our eyes closed.”  atlas begins with “darkness.“ next up will be the sibling of darkness, “light.” the rest of the titles will be kept quiet until closer to their respective releases (you might be able to find some clues in the video below…).

the songs for each ep will be inspired by their given theme from many different angles. for instance, the first ep, “darkness,” gives me an opportunity to explore interpretations of what darkness is: it’s the unknown, it’s blindness, it’s sorrow, it’s loss, but it’s also beginnings.

Art will be involved too. Specifically, a  painting will be released digitally to subscribers of the EP for EACH. SONG. RELEASED. So, let’s bullet point the significance of this, shall we?

• The artwork gives fans incentive to subscribe to the Sleeping at Last brand, and feel intimately more involved with the project
• Atlas abandons notions of rigid dates in the industry
• Atlas ensures continuity in O’Neal’s career for the next three years or more…no awkward gaps between projects and touring
• The open-ended release dates allow for O’Neal to be involved with other projects
• The scope of the project is nearly unprecedented. 6 EPs and 28 songs in 2013 alone, with the knowledge that at least the next two years are already mapped out? I’ve heard of mapping out albums, but never one project like this.
• Atlas will be the ultimate marriage of keeping the fans satisfied with music and keeping the suspense rolling…like a story where it is impossible to skip ahead, or even read the table of contents (as you could metaphorically do with Yearbook)

We at IATU will cover this story with appropriate reviews as this unfolds. Here’s the artwork for the first EP, titled “Darkness” (credit to Geoff Benzing):