A sparse and strange affair. Part dub, part ambient, part soundtrack, part drone, all rolled into one short, intriguing package.
Larvae’s latest—the Ghost Dubs EP—is a sparse and strange affair. Part dub, part ambient, part soundtrack, part drone, all rolled into one short, intriguing package. In all honesty it has required repeated listenings to get a handle on it before reviewing. “A Thousand Years” ends before one is aware it’s begun with its brief waft of hazy drones, guitars and voices emitted as if from a cavern. “Oni” is like something RZA did for the Ghost Dog soundtrack but hid away because it was too dark and scared him. On “The Black Cat,” percussion is gentle and mellow, while airy pads and loops remind one of sounds escaping from a 1980’s 4AD release. “At The Gates” pulses with a simple kick, hat, and stick beat with spacious guitar and bass pinning the numinous keys to the rhythm. “Woman of The Snow” closes out, a piece from an imaginary Japanese film from an alternative universe where dark beats ride alongside a koto in a sombre loop.
Ghost Dubs is available on The Crime League.
