Two smeary left field pop records whose interrupted transmissions I have been receiving in the secret bunker of late.
The first is “Yearling” by Orcas.
For their 2nd collaborative release, Orcas members Benoît Pioulard & Rafael Anton Irisarri Teamed up with Martyn Heyne (of Efterklang) on guitar & piano, and Michael Lerner (Telekinesis) on drums. Together they build upon the subdued ambience of their self-titled debut, adding a huge dose of analogue warmth to their hazy pop leanings. Most of ‘yearling’ was constructed from short pieces Pioulard wrote & developed. Whether it’s the soaring guitars of “Infinite Stillness”, the Lynchian otherworldliness of “Filament”, the echoes of “Spirit Of Eden” era Talk Talk on “Capillaries” or the slow-building tape loops of “Tell”, ‘Yearling’ subsists on variation while holding a lyrical centre.
It’s perfect for late night, contemplative listening and after a couple of spins, the melodic wonder of the smeared, watercolour songcraft seeps through into your consciousness. A beautiful heavy pressing on white vinyl with awesome artwork puts the tin hat on it. Highly recommended.
Orcas – Half Light.
The second record in this post-Winter celebration of the Autumnal is “The Green EP” from Warp veteran, Bibio. He’s been producing intelligent, individual records for a while now and for my money, continues to get better and better. The Green EP was released at the start of the year as an addendum to last year’s “Silver Wilkinson” album.
The Green E.P. is centered around “Dye the Water Green”, which was first featured in Bibio’s excellent 2013 album Silver Wilkinson. “I wanted to do a follow up EP with ‘Dye the Water Green’ as it is my favourite track off Silver Wilkinson and I also have a lot of music in my archives that would complement the track well,” said Bibio.
He’s pulled together a lovely, heartwarming set of lo-fi, pastoral folk pop songs as heard through a veil of half-sleep while the music drifts in from the next room. Yet again, the spectre of old Talk Talk records and in particular the Mark Hollis solo record is never that far away. My favourite track on the album is the deeply romantic “Down To The Sound” which has a simple but incredibly moving lyric about lying in bed with someone you love in your own little world as an end of Summer storm comes in. Just incredibly beautiful stuff. His playing and singing is always great but his voice and phrasing on this track is something else. It took me a while to pick out the second line of the song, so in case you’re wondering, I reckon it’s “Too hot for covers or windows to be closed”. Melodically breathtaking and super atmospheric. By the time the storm breaks and we hear the “sunshine being taken taken by a downpour”, I’m pretty much lost in it.
Bibio – Down To The Sound.
Another wonderful pressing from Warp with quality art thematically linked to the “Silver Wilkinson” sleeve and the greenest vinyl ever pressed seals the deal. One to treasure.
Clandestine Listening Apparatus 