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Wastelanders, "Cosmic Despair"
An ambient side project from Dean Costello (Harpoon, Diatribes, Winters in Osaka), Cosmic Despair is a perfectly titled album: a long suite of guitar and organ bleakness, with just a hint of psychedelia to keep it different and unexpected.
Basses Frequences/Calls and Correspondence
"The Beginning" leads off with rich, funereal type organ drones that hit just that right level of creepy without becoming cliché, creating a distinctly dreary atmosphere.Guitars drop in noticeably, but do not upset the dark atmosphere that was already created.The result is chugging, resonating waves of indistinct noise that manage to be simultaneously dark and inviting."Abstraction" has a slightly more restrained dynamic, but a vintage-tinged, nostalgic hum and heavy waves of bass give it its own unique identity.
"Expanding Mental Universe" is where things begin to get spacey.Sci fi synth blurbs, slathered in reverb, pulse outward with understated drifting tones atop.Subtle variations on the same theme are the norm before overdriven bass and crunchy, earthy guitars come in to ground the otherwise cosmic vibe, with the two instruments eventually becoming equals in the mix.
Also channeling in the more celestial elements, "The Crossing" begins with shimmering electronic swells leading to an overall more restrained, pensive quality to it.While the electronics are a big piece of the equation, resonating guitar notes draw focus.Sparse, deliberate tones glide through the synthetic ambience.An almost hidden layer of percussion is there to be heard, pushed into the distance but panning around the entire track, giving a certain dynamic flow to it before ending on gloriously hallucinogenic organ tones.
Cosmic Despair does exactly what the title indicates, bringing in an astronomical take on dark, bleak atmospheres, but the use of identifiable guitars serve to keep things somewhat grounded.The bleakness is particularly well done, because it never slides into tired or overwrought territory.Like the best dark ambient, it knows exactly how dark to get before sliding into self-parody.
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