For Rattle‘s second album through the good people at Upset The Rhythm, they have chosen to use the long player as an opportunity to stretch their drum and vocal experiments over durations that allow the tracks to fully insinuate with their gradually unfurling structures. It is as if they took the ideas exhibited on their self-titled four track seven-inch EP and expanded it to LP length, giving Sequence two tracks per side, but each track stretching to a good ten minutes.
I must admit, when I first read the premise behind the duo of Katharine Eira Brown and Theresa Wrigley and saw the photograph on the inner sleeve, I was expecting something along the lines of Maria And The Mirrors, but the subtle opening gambit of first track “DJ”, with its simple but repetitive well-dampened drum pattern, is relatively gentle. It is as the cymbals are introduced that the tension starts to escalate with added bass drum rolls, but not to a point of mania. It just makes you take notice and really spot the graduations.
The voices cooing in the background are the antithesis of the howling voodoo I was expecting and complement the growing cymbal shower. Everything drops away at one point and then builds again around hi-hat chatter and the swaying vocals, and this is the beauty of allowing the tracks this length. If the song needs to change or to be sent off in a different direction, then there is space to do that. The voice is more prominent on the second track “Disco”, with the bass drum and cymbal work more obvious in its tribal intent, and on the whole allows the listener more opportunity to just sink into the repetition. The last thirty seconds kind of blast you out of your reverie; but I mean, what did you expect? There is a flat vocal delivery on the opening to side two which sits well with the low-end drum sound and oohs and ahhs accompany the mantra-like delivery of “Go on and hit it / Head on” which is interspersed with the word “uprising” delivered in a different tone. It is hypnotic and rather affecting, but finally makes way for the jazzy intro to last track, “The Rocks”.Here, it is less about repetition and more about flashing all over the kit, not allowing things to sit still. It feels as though they just want to stretch their legs and show that it is not all simplicity. It is fidgety and inventive and the cymbal playing is great as Katharine insists, “more fool you”, repeating and repeating until you think she and you will go out of your mind.
Sequence is such a lovely and unusual album that allows Rattle’s simple ideas to stretch out and take on unexpected shapes. Perhaps next time, it will be one track per side. We can only hope.-Mr Olivetti-
