All Tiny Creatures - Segni

Stacked melodies, distorted organs, stretched chords,reimagined vocals: Collections of Colonies of Bees/Volcano Choir multi-instrumentalist Thomas Wincekdrops his Emotional Joystick handle for the gloriousthemes of All Tiny Creatures. During the 17-minutetitular piano triumph of Segni and through the lumi -nous haze of Street Lights Ten Thousand Feet, ATC sdebut EP builds four ideas into four engrossing instru -mentals. This limited-edition colored vinyl release isa prelude to ATC s debut LP featuring vocalistsJustin Vernon (Bon Iver), Megafaun and Ryan Olcott(12 Rods, Mystery Palace) due in early 2010.The four pieces that comprise Segni unequivocally reflect twoideas: First, there s an understanding of and appreciation fortheory, whether that means simple chords and the complexchanges between them, or computer programs and the variousmicrophones that provide their sonic sustenance. That s here.But, it s the second idea the one that says complex structuresand rules must not prohibit the composer from bending a piecetoward the ear of the listener that wordlessly explains themagic of All Tiny Creatures. These songs sweep you up in theirmotion, drawing more attention to how they sound and the waythey make you feel than the how and why of their construction. Minor might be a four-minute exploration of plopping aC-minor above interlocked C and E-flat chords, their respectivethirds removed. But above an escalating drone and buildingdrums, it feels more like Philip Glass in 1972, shooting steroidsto score an action short. The idea is heavy, but the listening isjust glorious.

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