Description:	USED LP on Type Records, EX+/EX
	Format:	LP (vinyl)
	Condition:	Used
	Genre(s):	Electronica / IDM
	Label:	Type
	Price:	£13.99
	Availability:	Sold out / currently unavailable. Sorry!

4
...according to our Mingus on 06 September 2007.

Helios: 'Ayres' (Type) Six track follow up to Keith Kennif's previous collection 'Eingya' (also on Type) is a heartbreaking collection of otherwordly pop that for the first time utilises Keith's vocal prowess. The six tracks here cover a warm palette of guitars, electronics and pianos in the style of his previous project Goldmund. This fragile use of instruments frame his voice in a deeply melancholic and mournful way.It exits with a crushing climax with a cover of the Ivers/Lynch track 'In Heaven' that fans will know from The Pixes version. I know i've said 'heartbreaking' many a time in this column but this mini LP mops the tears from an overflowing bucket of blue.

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What their label says...

It hasn't been long since Keith Kenniff's gorgeous collection of gauzy, cinematic sound-poems 'Eingya' slipped into the consciousness. In a short space of time the Boston based multi-instrumentalist has become awash with acclaim and been invited to perform numerous live dates around Europe, something which gave life and inspiration to this latest collection of work. Those who managed to catch him on the most recent tour will already be aware that Keith has just taken up his most breathtaking instrument yet ! his voice, and 'Ayres' is his first exploration of this new-found talent. 'Eingya' managed with the simplest of means to show just how crushing Keith's songwriting was, but here he pieces together five gorgeous songs and one inspired cover with devastating results.

Combining his many musical loves, Keith manages somehow to bring in the warring elements of indie-pop, experimental electronics, folk and world music resulting in a sound which is distinctly his own; these might be songs in the traditional sense, but there's little traditional about the way they have been produced. Decaying synthesizer sounds trip up over carefully strummed guitars and expertly carved percussion, take opening track 'A Rising Wind' which is maybe the most effortless display of Keith's talents; this is a slow burning epic, beginning with the simplest of sound-palettes and growing into a jubilant dream-pop masterpiece. Elsewhere, standout track 'The Obeisant Vine' blends the hazy nostalgic electronics of the Brian Eno with the songwriting heart of the Innocence Mission leaving you gasping for more. By the time the mini-album ends with a cover of 'In Heaven', that song from David Lynch's seminal 'Eraserhead', you realize you have spent half an hour in Helios's world, and it's a world you'll want to escape to again and again.