Good things come in threes, some say. Bad things come in threes, I also hear. Hence we can conclude that anything that comes on its own is neither good nor bad, and is merely average. So when football fans chant “there is only one Ali Karimi”, as I’m sure they do, they aren’t being especially complimentary to the free-scoring Iranian midfielder, and some would argue they probably should be taken outside and shot for their insolence. If they haven’t been already. Thankfully, this new release from Steven R Smith under his Ulaan Khol guise (sounds more like a Mongolian dictator to me) is the first part of a trilogy, which means it is possible to form an opinion on it. It must be either good or bad. QED.
As you can probably tell by the fact that I have expended valuable man-minutes on cursory internet research into the Iranian football team, it is good. With the earth still smouldering from the effects of his two most recent releases (the latest Thuja LP, and Owl under his own name) comes this scorching new crusade, a full-on strapped-on locked-on guitar assault. On the opening track explosions ring out across the bleak landscape, decaying to leave only a mournful organ requiem amongst the drums of war. Elsewhere across these unhelpfully untitled pieces you can find some heat-blistered psych-rock fragments nestled amongst rocky plains which are otherwise covered in layers of pleasingly ragged and doomy drone. A zenith of sorts is attained on the seventh bloody wave, which presses melody into active service, where it fights with commendable bravery through the toughest of conditions - a harsh white squall of horizontal riffage.
To conclude…what was I banging on about again? Oh yes, the unholy alliance’s forthcoming war against Iran - I preferred their earlier work, which isn’t saying much. No, that wasn’t it. I was reviewing the first part of Steven R Smith’s logically inescapably inevitably excellent new Ceremony trilogy. I’m a little shellshocked, to be honest.
There’s only one Soft Abuse. Pick up a copy there.
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April 9, 2008 at 8:47 pm
sean
heard Owl and I both, but was really blown away by the latter. Owl was wonderful, as expected from Steven R. Smith, but the Soft Abuse album is really something else. Is there something about the label itself that lends certain textures to their work (a miasmah effect?). More likely, the artists just channel their artistry towards the label most appropriate for their sound, but even that scenario seems to suggest some implicit influence from a labels. I think I’m bloviating here, but it’s lovely to see the labels and artists apparently coexisting off the other’s efforts, in a sort of feedback loop of influences.
You likely have a deeper well of knowledge relating to DIY and independent labels, does this (apparent) trend trace back beyond cassette labels? If not, it’s sort of lovely to observe the non-musical, communal, grouping habits of cdr/cassette/diy music culture having a real influence on the sounds.
April 9, 2008 at 8:53 pm
sean
it would be helpful if I mentioned my perception of Soft Abuse as a sort of safe harbor for contemporary sing-along-noise (Futurians, Pumice, etc.). That may not be a terribly accurate perception, considering releases from groups like PANTS YELL! or Giant Skyflower Band (though noise/discordant sound is an important part Skygreen, I think), or the general pervasiveness of the trend outside of Soft Abuse.