Tim Hecker Ravedeath 1972

There's certain music that I find near impossible to "review" at work - analysis & contemplation needs to be done in an environment where there are near to no distractions and somewhere where you can amp it up to your hearts content. Like what i'm doing now with Tim Hecker's new one, my enjoyment enhanced further avec cup o' tea in hand! I've always been in awe of this chap's shuddering, all-enveloping sound worlds. He's been tampering with an in situ church organ around Iceland's capital by all accounts, assisted by fellow dark ambienteer Ben Frost. My Father used to play the church organ, hence i've never been all that fond of the racket the bloody thing blurts out of it's massive pipes, but with a handful of recent excursions in left-field sound-art tipping their collective caps respectfully towards these hulking, virtually immovable behemoths, I find myself warming considerably. Especially when this lad starts manipulating drones & teasing shards of sonic excitement out of what is often a very pompous, solemn sounding battle axe of an instrument; beautifully layering grinding astral fuzz & feral waves of white noise all over the ever-evolving palette of zen-like notes he coaxes, seduces & stretches from his "primary source". My dad must have been playing it wrong, I dunno. This is totally wonderful stuff, even though I'm listening to this on a shitty ripped MP3 that keeps on stuttering, distorting and freezing, the bit rate of which is probably lower than my IQ (so pretty bloody shoddy sounding) but it doesn't particularly dull the essence of what is a blinding exercise in abstract composition. Too feisty to be ambient, too atmospheric to be noise. This is a heady, cerebral journey that your ears will never thank you enough for!!

Tim Hecker 5 out of fuckin' 5, go on my son...