The first new music from Seefeel since 2010’s self-titled LP is a really welcome return and although now down to a duo of Mark Clifford and Sarah Peacock with assistance from bassist Shigeru Ishihara (AKA DJ Scotch Egg, also of WaqWaq Kingdom) on a couple of tracks, it sounds as though they have never been away.
Originally described as the first guitar band to be signed to Warp, actually referring to Seefeel as a guitar band does them a huge disservice as they are simply an experimental beat-driven electronic act which also uses guitar as part of its arsenal.
How they manage to bury some sounds in a distorted haze while others chime across the surface is a complete mystery. Mark’s willingness to pluck sounds from wherever — the beats on “Antiskeptic” sound like somebody shovelling snow while a resonant bass drum bursts into life — and twist them into something that suits his specific purposes never grows old. The beats are often insistent, but sometimes at odds with the other elements, as if your hearing has gone awry slightly and some sounds are arriving earlier then others. The overall effect is of being transported somewhere where the normal rules no longer apply.
Seefeel still inhabit their own universe where electronica, industrial, ambient and dub coalesce and I still think nobody else sounds like them. On the strength of this new material, there is plenty more life left and it will be interesting to see how it fares on the road. I can only hope there is more to come.
-Mr Olivetti-