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Sunroof!, "Splat!"
This Sunroof! docking with satellite ecstatica continues Matthew Bower’s exploration into the brighter side of drone experimentation. This is one of the best places yet to begin to attempt to keep up with Bower’s worldview and schedule. Programmed as a single track yet built out of many chunks of separate jams and studio tinkering this continues the Sunroof! tradition of gorgeously excessive bliss up against a sense of playful freedom.
Capturing the project’s playful melodic shine in smaller amounts allows for a newly realised appreciation. Instead of getting into (or out of) his ability to create ecstatic zone-out worlds it’s easier to see the intricacy and details in the construction of these pieces. These songs last long enough to suck me in, get me involved in actively enjoying / listening and then moving instantly into the next song. Since he doesn’t use any studio floor scraps there’s no musical short-changing here.
It’s the range of his musical reach within this seamless pulse that keeps this release at the top of the pile. Bower meets the expectations gleaned from his previous work and then peppers Splat! with elements that could’ve come from a fledging pop act a third of his age. It’s obvious that these steps aren’t a reaching out or an effort to catch the latest tsunami trend but a mind that moves more than just to the beat of drone. From great smudged rotating arcs of light through a garage stomp with high-end fuckery FX to a vocal slice of Fleetwood Mac’s mighty “Rhiannon” submerged in feathers of feedback. It’s tempting to go through every piece (the electro distorted stoner metal, power loops of broken bells, primary coloured rainbow splurges and flailing power cable piano thumps) to try and capture the feel of all the facets here. This is a mini-epic and a rival of any of Sunroof!s two disc releases.
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