The beats are certainly deep, and it has parts that are pure groove, but it’s the ability to take you to another place through the trance like quality of the numerous and complex layers of sound which are thoughtfully sourced from all manner of places that really sets it apart.
As I listened to this EP I fell into a trance. The deep hypnotic beats massaging my brain until I was helplessly in its power. I was whisked away from the grey winter of my physical environment and taken on a journey through wild imaginings. A celestial path descended from above, like a cosmic ribbon extending into the sky further then my eyes could see, beckoning me to step forward onto the gently undulating folds of its substance. I saw exotic cities in the parched desert sun, gleaming white and blue with strange tongues issuing forth from the thronging people within. I saw ancient shamanic rituals performed by men who took the shape of bears and wolves by firelight under the sky with sadness in their eyes. I saw a woman dressed in tatters in a war stricken city crying for her lost children among the shells of broken buildings and the pain was too much to bear. I glimpsed sexual depravity through windows of skyscrapers, never quite enough to see all that was going on. Fragments of radio broadcasts swirled in and out of my consciousness fleetingly, as if trying to send me cryptic messages across the ether. I was crying and laughing simultaneously, seeing the folly and destructive sadness of the human race, and at the same time glimpsing the depth of human resilience and kindness. When the music had ended I had seen parts of the universe that no human eye had seen before, and I woke from my induced reverie feeling exhausted, but as though I had been let in on a secret that held the key to everything…
Seriously, this EP is amazing! I mean an EP entitled Making Time for God by The Ghost of J. Beauregard and The Children of God has got to be something a bit special. It takes the loose form of deep house, but this doesn’t really describe it. The beats are certainly deep, and it has parts that are pure groove, but it’s the ability to take you to another place through the trance like quality of the numerous and complex layers of sound which are thoughtfully sourced from all manner of places that really sets it apart.
The opening track – “Marimba For God – (Alice are you hung up)” starts out with a looping percussion texture and deep deep kick leading into a driving groovy bass line. The sonic textures quickly build up with snatches of vocal sounds and flutes swirling in and out. So many layers, layers hidden within layers. Listen to it several times to allow it all to sink in. The Walker Barnard remix is something of an epic, lasting over 15 minutes. The general premise is the same, hypnotic layering of deep grooviness. “X-Mass Lights In The Sky, Coca, and Keef Moons” is surprising to say the least in its intro. You might find yourself checking the readout on your player to check that you haven’t been hijacked by a bizarre rogue mind-enslaving broadcast. A few minutes in though, and we’re back into a tranced out texture made up of strange effected field recordings followed quickly by an extremely deep kick drum holding it all together. Well, there’s no point in describing the track, you really need to put some time aside and immerse yourself into it. The remix is by Mikael Stavostrand and puts a suitable quirky twist on things. Key words are still deep and complex, maybe hypnotic should be included here too. The last track, entitled “Her Weather Is Not To our Liking” is a final spaced out trip that is at times frightening and definitely surreal. The depth of bass on the kick drum is enough to shake you bodily into submission, against which you will probably find yourself utterly defenceless. It’s similar to watching a 1950’s Sci-fi/Horror film after stuffing your face with magic mushrooms for 30 minutes, then being sucked into the screen and finding yourself wondering alone through an alien world.
I am becoming a serious fan of the output from Adjunct Audio; they are consistently putting out deep and interesting thought provoking music that keeps you guessing. This EP is outstanding, I can’t wait for the next installment.
Making Time For God will be released January 17th, 2011 on Adjunct Audio.
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