On a cool evening, I was going through tracks for my playlist, looking for something that could capture that gentle autumn-winter chill. Unexpectedly, a piece by the American artist Hiest, called whirr, caught my attention. It feels like it could serve as a musical description of any winter evening.
The track begins with cold electric piano notes, paired with sounds reminiscent of a theremin. Together, they create the feeling of an open, endless snowy field. There is no horizon, no beginning of the land—just a gray expanse of snow. This feeling could be called loneliness, but it doesn’t weigh you down. It’s more like the perspective of an observer: you simply watch, take everything as it is, and accept this state without unnecessary emotional pressure.
Within this cold beauty, there is a certain warmth. Especially if you don’t venture further into the unknown but stay in place, observing and listening. The sound teeters between icy melancholy and the warm, steady rhythm of lo-fi percussion with subtle sound effects. Unlike dark ambient, whirr doesn’t let you get lost in your own thoughts. Instead, it becomes a quiet locomotive, carrying you steadily through this gloomy yet mesmerizing soundscape, helping you stay present and reconcile with the cold around and inside yourself. This is what makes it such a special companion for an evening.
For a similar calm and reflective vibe, I’ve also enjoyed Passing By by Sam Ojalvo & Chilldabeast, which works perfectly for quiet evening walks.
