Comparative Album Reviews: The Liminal States of Man Rei's Cusp & Nailah Hunter's Spells EP
For centuries, witchcraft has been the sign and symbol of subversive and liminal pathways in life and art; the focal point of cultural anxieties and repressed dreams. Lately, the aesthetics of witchiness have enjoyed a major resurgence. Showing up in fashion and the popularity of herbs and crystals, its widespread...
Seiho – Collapse Album Review (Leaving Records)
On March 15, 2015, the Washington Post published a typically buzzworthy article titled, "Is the Internet Giving Us All ADHD?". The article begins with the usual litany of start-of-days, most likely familiar to anyone who works at a desk or a computer, or spends a large amount of time e-mailing,...
M. Geddes Gengras – Ishi Album Review (Leaving Records)
Ishi, the newest synthetic slow-burner from LA-based M. Geddes Gengras, is based on the story of "the last wild Indian" named Ishi, who emerged from the wilds of Northern California in 1911, at the age of 49. M. Geddes Gengras may be best known for two acclaimed collaborations with Sun Araw, but he's quite accomplished in his own right. He's played in some of the noise underground's most famous exports, such as LA Vampires, Pocahaunted, and Robedoor, as well as releasing a slew of solo records, mostly revolving around synthesizers and improvisation. On Ishi, Gengras' modular synths simulate the sensation of wandering through a city crowd for the first time, where the ladies' fashion is like so many colorful birds; where the endless stream of faces becomes a babbling brook. It's almost too much to take in; it's overwhelming, so it just becomes a colorful blur of humanity.