The Legendary Pink Dots seem unaware or unconcerned about the unwritten record industry rule that discourages artists from releasing multiple albums simultaneously. The proverbial wisdom has it that multiple releases confuse the record-buying public, and the albums tend to cannabilize each other's sales. Multiple albums have ruined a multitude of bands, from the Incredible String Band all the way to Kiss and Guns N' Roses. Well, the Pink Dots have been ignoring that maxim for quite a while now. In fact, Pink Dots albums tend to come it two and threes, often with a few solo albums thrown in for good measure. No exception here, as this month brings three new Pink Dots releases, in addition to a new Ka-Spel solo album. Everything is being released on the eve of their North American tour, which takes them through far more US cities than any other underground British/Dutch post-industrial psychedelic art-goth group could even dream of visiting. The extensive touring may be the secret to the Pink Dots impressive longevity and endurance, as they are frequently one of the most critically ignored bands in the underground scene. The Whispering Wall isn't going to rectify this situation, a typically indigestible concoction of psychedelic whimsy, wildly experimental textures, densely prophetic lyrical themes and skewed songwriting all mixed up together in a gooey prog-rock quagmire. Evaluating its relative quality compared to other albums is almost a moot point, as most hardcore Dots fans will certainly want to own every album regardless, and others stopped caring 30 albums ago. That said, The Whispering Wall does have some brilliant moments, and is very cohesive, easily eclipsing 2002's double feature of All The King's Horses and All The King's Men, albums that had strong points, but would have been better whittled down to a single disc. Those albums saw the band in a transitional period, finding their footing after the departure of Ryan Moore, trying out a more intimate, stripped-down sound that became tiresome after a few listens. This time around, there's been a few more personnel changes -- the loss of guitarist/violinist Martijn de Kleer and the addition of guitarist Erik Drost -- but the Pink Dots have come out intact and smelling (and sounding) like a bouquet of atomic roses. All the familiar Dots elements are present on The Whispering Wall. There's a good bit of future-scare dystopian proselytizing ("Soft Toy"); a sinister riff on a nursery rhyme ("Dominic"); a slow-cooked instrumental ("The Region Beyond"); the ubiquitous spoken-word EKS narrative against a backdrop of densely layered noise and sound effects ("The Divide"); and just plain demented silliness ("King of a Small World"). The soupy production by Dots mainstay Raymond Steeg is typically heavy-handed (in a good way, lots of sonic detail), and each player is given time to shine: Silverman's expertly-wielded synthesizers and rhythm programming, Niels Van Hoorn's exquisite saxophone blasts and Erik Drost's gutsy swathes of shredding psych guitar are all variously highlighted in the mix. It's an accomplished album by a prolific band who continue to prove that although less is certainly more, more can also be more. - Jonathan Dean, Brainwashed