 Cavendish
Sanguine
"Strange Alloys, Rare Earths" CDR
Fflint
Central
Genres: experimental, electronic, ambient
Dec 6 - 12 2004 |
Strange Alloys, Rare Earths is the latest album from Fflint
Central act Cavendish Sanguine, and in true Fflint tradition,
it occupies the creepy, dark space between electronica and noise.
The tracks are based on haunting atmospheres brought on by mysterious
ambiences and experimental glitch noises. Samples are also used
frequently; "Bronze," for example, uses slowed-down speech
clips and bird songs to create an eerie juxtaposition between evilness
and innocence.
Since the majority of Strange Alloys is based on soundscapes,
it doesn't exactly lend itself to general accessibility. Such a
trait would be a problem, but the sincere creepiness that Cavendish
Sanguine is able to create here makes for a particularly
noteworthy experience.
The most "accessible" tracks on this disc would probably be
"Hyderus," "Oss," and the title-track - due to the
presence of rhythm in all three of them - but the beats are far from
conventional. All rhythm is cold and experimental, with little
variation. This just adds to the album's dark, mechanical
feel. "Oss" produces a particularly interesting effect
- it lays a cold, robotic thump-beat over field recordings from some
sort of accordion fest. The contrast between the joyful
sounds of the festival and the dark, depressing metallic rhythms are
particularly sobering.
Strange Alloys, Rare Earths makes me think of grimy gears
and slow-moving metal parts. If you're looking for a chilling
reminder of where our world is headed, look no further. The dark
experimental electronics of Cavendish Sanguine will scare you
silly.
85%
Fun Fact: Henry Cavendish:
"1731-1810 English scientist; discovered composition of water;
developed notion of electrical potential; discovered nitric acid;
devised Cavendish experiment to determine gravitational constant,
density of Earth." sanguine:
"consisting of or relating to blood"
Matt Shimmer [Vitals:
7 tracks, distributed by the
label, released 2004] |
