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A fine LP; elements of post-rock, blues and good old fashioned experimentation all add something to the stew. Plus it has a lugubrious, lazy, Continental attitude that is really appealing. The music is split into 5 tracks, the opener 21 Echoes Short is a slinky, bluesy number which snakes along at an untroubled pace, very similar to a very slow work out by the Velvet Underground or a slow moment on 7Up when Tim Leary’s not hollering on about karma or some such. Suddenly everything ends with a thrashy, atonal amalgam of blasts and pattering drum fills. A simply brilliant beginning to the LP.
The slinky, moody vibe from 21 Echoes… is carried over into 12 From, which is given a sinister air by an echoing, thudding noise that pops up regularly. Some growling, subterranean electronic drones begin to jostle with a mournful set of bleeps and squiggles, some feedback (and the thudding) to create a very moody not dissimilar to the sort of music you could imagine accompanying a seventies spy thriller. It’s powerful stuff. The shorter 6I is a similarly atmospheric workout, starting off as a more upbeat offering than the first two tracks, and driven by a jangly guitar run and an “insouciant” jazzy bass line that has the feel of Serge Gainsbourg all over it… Halfway through the track changes in character completely: a meandering, suggestive set of notes and half phrases on an acoustic guitar is accompanied by some minimal backing on bass, a musical concoction which sets the scene for 9 Moving, which is a slow plodding work out between acoustic and bass that settles into a rhythm that propels it towards a dusky, dry meditation of sorts.
Last track 9 (8) Electricity is more of a burn up, a restless drum and bass pattern builds a platform of sorts for the guitars to conduct a scraping, swirling conversation over. However, like on 9 Moving, things also settle down to become a shimmering abstract meditation.
A very, very enjoyable record indeed.