Watching has moments of overt and erratic sounds one moment and then completely unexpected turns in the opposite direction. One moment calm, then a storm. It is a near perfect audio representation of a universe. Be that an external and multidimensional one, or an internal one. Or that of a very special mouse.
A near perfect audio representation of a universe
There’s not a cat in sight, the coast is clear and the mouse can come outside to do his thing once again. This time Letters From Mouse (Steven Anderson) brings us his delightful album Watching via Philadelphia label Music Is The Devil.
I found myself captured in the snap trap that is LFM last year when he released the Proto Human album on Kahvi. A record that contains some superb compositions and head nodding gems. I then find out about his weekly radio show (The Magic Window) he hosts via Mad Wasp Radio and tune into it whenever I can. Not content with his own musical arrangements, Steven is hard at work promoting artists around the world. His weekly roundups have introduced me to talent that I wouldn’t have likely come across. Steven also selected four of the artists that appeared on Werra Foxma’s excellent Strange Selectors compilation release. It really is one to tune into. A game changer if you feel starved of creative electronic music. The Magic Window airs on Sunday evenings at 21:00 GMT.
So, enough about the man and more about the mouse. Watching begins with the opening track “Northern Lights.” It’s an odd starting track, it has a feeling to it like it should be in the middle of a listening experience with It catching you off guard. It’s almost like an entity has just announced itself completely unexpectedly into my realm. “What are you doing here?”, it made me ask… Now I feel watched.
LFM has brought something back from the very far reaches of the universe or from a compost heap in his own backyard. I cannot make my mind up as of which one?
“Shine” has a rhythmic quality and the enlightening melodies of Plaid. The breakdown half way through this one takes me back to the days of Rest Proof Clockwork (Warp, 1999)—it’s got that jaunty, groove about it and subtle whispering effects that trip you over into the side show of the circus tent. This is where you confront the weird. The strange and dizzy heights of the things that are outside of normal.
The triumphant vibes from “Blood and Bone” wouldn’t sound out of place for some finale of an epic video game. You’ve got the girl, killed the alien conspirator freaks and switched on the reactor, saving the world and humankind and sending those invaders back to their dying planet. Sweeping synths reaching a climatic high with much meandering through the track. It’s nicely overwhelming.
At near halfway point the mood is stirred to one of isolation. The cosmic drift that is “Helix Nebula” runs at over six and a half minutes. This is the point of which we can go no further within our mere mortal bodies. Trying to see the wiring under the board or the madness in the method but every time we think we have a breakthrough, we find there are just more questions than answers. Yeah… This one does something weird to you. Here, LFM has brought something back from the very far reaches of the universe or from a compost heap in his own backyard. I cannot make my mind up as of which one?
Returning from our brief trip into hyperspace we ride the hydrogen wave back to “1420 Megahertz.” With a sleepy, dream like voyage, reversed synth leads one to lose the benchmark or focal point of time. Trapped in an ageless and endless universe. There’s direct in your face melodic happenings within this record but equally the parts I enjoy the most come with a sort of effortlessness about them. “Double of Nothing Is Nothing” is once such example. For me this track stands out, as with “Helix Nebula” it has a vibe about it that makes it different to the others on the album. It operates on rules of its own and sounds like LFM isn’t limiting himself and going on a musical self discovery. This track is progressive, but by no means predictable and has the ability of not giving too much of itself away.
Watching has moments of overt and erratic sounds one moment and then completely unexpected turns in the opposite direction. One moment calm, then a storm. It is a near perfect audio representation of a universe. Be that an external and multidimensional one, or an internal one. Or that of a very special mouse.
Watching is available on Music Is The Devil. [Bandcamp]
