Have you ever trudged across a desert and watched in sublime awe as the sun bled into the horizon? I haven’t, but I’m sure it would be pretty cool…that is, until an hour later when you start to fatigue, your ass begins to sweat, and you grow tired of seeing nothing but cactuses, sand (and maybe the occasional rattle snake) for miles and miles and miles...and miles.
That’s what Earth’s latest release “Angels of Darkness Demons of Light” feels like to me: it has some inspiring, sublime moments, but the songs begin to wear thin, and the often lackluster riffs do little to regain my attention. The music sounds a little like a mix between post-rock and drone, with a distinct western feel to it (in my mind at least). Dylan Carlson added a cello, which is a nice touch, and the bass on this album also does a great job of holding the music down while seemingly winding in and out of songs. Meanwhile, the drums can get fucked. I understand that this music is largely atmospheric, and as a drummer, figuring out what to play that fits the feel but that doesn’t bore can be challenging. Except it sounds like the drummer's solution to this problem was to just say “okay, every time the guitar like, goes down a note, I’ll hit a tom or something and follow along”. Seriously, every fill has me holding my breath wondering if the drummer is going to make it to the floor tom (he always ends on the floor tom). It’s as if the band all got really high and wanted to take sonic flight, but their fat ass drummer weighed them down. The cymbals do have a nice timbre to them, though.
Fans of Earth who have listened to their previous two albums, “The Bees Made Honey” and “Hex”, will probably find some moments on “Angels” sounding very familiar. Except, “Angels” manages to somehow sound even sparser than Earth’s previous efforts. Maybe this is a good thing though. Not all music has to hurl itself at you. Sometimes you have to put in the work and….puufff…like let the music into YOU brah.
But in all seriousness, sparse, abstract music can often provide some of the best listening experiences. Instead of having some cunt yelling at you in an affected British accent about the pangs of his heart, you can create your own narrative and explore your own thoughts. One of the things I often like to do when I listen to more abstract albums is come up with story lines that fit the arc of the music. A little like playing a movie in my head. Except, when I tried to do this with “Angles of Darkness, Demons of Light” a good 40 minutes of the movie I made consisted of a dude with a scraggly beard standing isolated in the expanse of a desert…and that’s it, just standing there, really. Occasionally blinking and maybe scratching his balls or something.
What I’m trying to say is that the music follows no arc. This might be okay if the world Earth conjured was so fascinating that you just didn’t want to leave, but that’s not the case. I think a YouTuber actually put it pretty well “this music makes me feel like a blind slug trying to cross a sidewalk on a hot summer day”. This comment got 94 likes. So I guess if you’re one of those kinky fucks that’s into that sort of thing…go for it man. If your not into that sort of thing, still give it a whirl, but don't expect your mind to be blown.
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That’s what Earth’s latest release “Angels of Darkness Demons of Light” feels like to me: it has some inspiring, sublime moments, but the songs begin to wear thin, and the often lackluster riffs do little to regain my attention. The music sounds a little like a mix between post-rock and drone, with a distinct western feel to it (in my mind at least). Dylan Carlson added a cello, which is a nice touch, and the bass on this album also does a great job of holding the music down while seemingly winding in and out of songs. Meanwhile, the drums can get fucked. I understand that this music is largely atmospheric, and as a drummer, figuring out what to play that fits the feel but that doesn’t bore can be challenging. Except it sounds like the drummer's solution to this problem was to just say “okay, every time the guitar like, goes down a note, I’ll hit a tom or something and follow along”. Seriously, every fill has me holding my breath wondering if the drummer is going to make it to the floor tom (he always ends on the floor tom). It’s as if the band all got really high and wanted to take sonic flight, but their fat ass drummer weighed them down. The cymbals do have a nice timbre to them, though.
Fans of Earth who have listened to their previous two albums, “The Bees Made Honey” and “Hex”, will probably find some moments on “Angels” sounding very familiar. Except, “Angels” manages to somehow sound even sparser than Earth’s previous efforts. Maybe this is a good thing though. Not all music has to hurl itself at you. Sometimes you have to put in the work and….puufff…like let the music into YOU brah.
But in all seriousness, sparse, abstract music can often provide some of the best listening experiences. Instead of having some cunt yelling at you in an affected British accent about the pangs of his heart, you can create your own narrative and explore your own thoughts. One of the things I often like to do when I listen to more abstract albums is come up with story lines that fit the arc of the music. A little like playing a movie in my head. Except, when I tried to do this with “Angles of Darkness, Demons of Light” a good 40 minutes of the movie I made consisted of a dude with a scraggly beard standing isolated in the expanse of a desert…and that’s it, just standing there, really. Occasionally blinking and maybe scratching his balls or something.
What I’m trying to say is that the music follows no arc. This might be okay if the world Earth conjured was so fascinating that you just didn’t want to leave, but that’s not the case. I think a YouTuber actually put it pretty well “this music makes me feel like a blind slug trying to cross a sidewalk on a hot summer day”. This comment got 94 likes. So I guess if you’re one of those kinky fucks that’s into that sort of thing…go for it man. If your not into that sort of thing, still give it a whirl, but don't expect your mind to be blown.
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