Hills Have Riffs - The Countryside Has Escaped

The Countryside Has Escaped is a collection of six doom-folk compositions, recorded and produced by Alexander Tucker, who also provides the beautifully haunting, reverb-soaked cello backing. Briggs and Tucker having shared a long history of collaboration dating back to their first teenage efforts as post-hardcore band SUCTION. There are unquestionable shades of Briggs post-rock and hardcore roots in the construction of this music. Certainly the repetitious, evolving use of mal-tuned riffs is the beating heart of these songs but comparisons to previous projects end here. The gentle, respectful treatment of over-amped guitars touch on later SWANS, with the stark monosyllabic vocal taking it s lyrical lead via FAIRPORT CONVENTION and FLYING SAUCER ATTACK. A bitter-sweet concoction of nostalgia and melancholy steadily unfold throughout, culminating in the brooding optimism of closing track The Countryside Has Escaped Part 2. A heavy acid trip come-down of a record, The Countryside Has Escaped sets a high standard for a fledgling solo act and is an exciting indication of what s to come.

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