Plurals

"Half Reality" CDR

Dead Sea Liner

Genre: drone, ambient

UK

October 2009

Drone music being the noise scene's most marketable commodity, I can see Plurals' Half Reality being one of those rare experimental releases that doesn't register scoffs and annoyance from clueless roommates and neighbours. In fact, this all-too brief CDR is a mesmerizingly hypnotic trip that's perfectly suited to dimly-lit rooms overlooking expansive, nighttime cityscapes. The adventure begins with the fourteen minute "Air Yet To Touch Skin," a haunting and oddly regal drone with Emeralds-esque mysticism. Despite its glacial pace, it seems far shorter than a quarter-hour, perhaps due to the subtle sense of tension it projects. The second track, "Hanging Bar," is a sparser work, and haunting for different reasons. An ethereal hum forms the backbone of the track, but it's the faraway, echoing sounds of voices and industrial machinery that occupy its somehow terrifying foreground. This could be the soundtrack to a scratchy, black-and-white horror film, or the sounds that emanate from your car stereo on a rural highway...

Previous to encountering this CDR, I was unfamiliar with Plurals' work, but this sublime EP has really piqued my curiosity. Some might contend that "drone music is drone music," but it is those ill-informed unfortunates who really ought to give Half Reality a spin. Now, if only it came in vinyl...

plurals' myspace

Matt Shimmer

[Vitals: 2 tracks, distributed by the label, released 2009]