What a strange, beautiful album. Truly a grower, it demands multiple listens. I know my jazz, I know my post-rock, I've never heard something quite like this. I was actually surprised that I know him through other artists he's worked with, which include Tom Waits and Arcade Fire. Super multi-talented, this guy plays clarinet, sax, horns, you name it, and they all appear on the album. And if you've heard it, you know that he can make squelches and screeches and blares and noises you didn't think were possible with them. Seriously, how does he do that? You want to get technical? Everything you hear is recorded LIVE with one shot takes. No overdubs or looping. That is insane considering that after the haunting opener, Judges kicks in and you wonder how the guy has time to breathe. Everything that follows is a surprise. Things continue to pick up on The Stars In His Head (Dark Lights Remix) before dropping off to the horns (trumpets?) on All The Days I've Missed You (ILAIJ I.) I mean, you can hear the emotion behind those horns. This turns into From No Part Of Me Can I Summon A Voice, which if you've got the right headphones, is a sonic mindfuck. It's interesting that the next track has the first spoken word since the last five seconds of Judges. Slightly reminiscent of that first Explosions album track Have You Passed Through This Night?, it compliments the music fine. . There were those who didn't run... There were those who kissed the grey skies... There were strangers, and conmen... There were those who laid there bodies down... We are being told a tale, but a grim one it seems. A Dream Of Water appropriately ends with gentle waves washing on shore. Home is an unsettling listen that could probably easily find home in a Korine flick. Now again, surprises. Just when you think you've figured out the album, vocals on Lord I Just Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes are SUNG, achingly. Gone are the computerized vocals from earlier as Shara Worden delivers her powerful blues. As far as single tracks go, the following Clothed In The Skin Of The Dead has to be my personal favorite track. It's playful. It almost takes a break from the overall somber mood of the album, perhaps on purpose. Small, yet nice interlude into Red Horses (Judges 2,) where horns imitate percussion and right on till the end. The closer is a mirror to track four which breaks and bleeds and finally burns away into nothing. All in all, this is one of the most sonic, emotional and all out impressive albums of the year.
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