The LP is a reflective series of soundscapes dealing with composer Melvin Wevers’ trip to the USA in 2006 and not surprisingly has the feeling of a documentary soundtrack to it.
And the Bloody Hand – Yankee Merzbild
There’s a beautiful opening to Yankee Merzbild with Song for Bobby, a creeping melody, drawing on treated piano in the best Harold Budd tradition. And it’s an opener which pretty much sets the template. The LP is a reflective series of soundscapes dealing with composer Melvin Wevers’ trip to the USA in 2006 and not surprisingly has the feeling of a documentary soundtrack to it. Tracks like Simon Says You float broodily around, aided by heavy, echoing effects.
Mostly, the music is stripped back and unobtrusive, even folksy, (check out ds8), driven by seemingly random guitar strums and backed by a keyboard effect or two. All of this gives an overwhelming feeling of space, and at times, of heat (which, in the case of tracks like Countylines, I am sure is deliberate).
Now and again things get jaunty: The Making Of is a country dance of sorts (albeit an increasingly bucolic one) sometimes as on the brilliantly spacey Nujork, they get into Cluster territory, but nothing ever gets out of hand…
A very enjoyable and reflective listen.
Words: Richard Foster