Sonic Cathedral
Currently conducting year-long commemorations to recognise two full decades of its stoic existence, the indomitable Sonic Cathedral label is keeping us well-stocked with new releases from both returning shoegaze pioneers in new guises and their younger disciples. Enter then, the debut full-length from Simon Scott’s side-project, Three Quarter Skies, to represent the former contingent.
wraparound immersion
Fade In finds the
Slowdive drummer – who has also been a prolific but low-key solo artist before now — deep in the darkest and most dissonant waters of the wider musical lineage associated with his day-job band. Mixed, tellingly, by
David Pearce of
Flying Saucer Attack, with a fleeting guest vocal spot from
Rachael Swinton of
Cloth, this is an album that takes its creator and the listener into a
wraparound immersion experience.
inscrutable layers
Combining somewhat
inscrutable layers of electronics, percussion, guitars and semi-inaudible vocals,
Fade In is an unrepentantly introspective affair, infused with reflections upon the recent passing of Scott’s mother, that doesn’t offer up easily accessible inroads. Consequently, it requires a certain amount of patience and a particular frame of mind, which won’t be available to all who encounter it. Yet, for those who can attune themselves to its sensibilities, there are rewards to be revealed over repeat airings.
Hence, highlights come with the opening “Slight Betrayal” determinedly setting the scene with commanding waves of drones and distortion; the yearning “Crows” imagining a Darklands-era Jesus and Mary Chain outtake produced by Robin Guthrie; and the Swinton-bolstered “Holy Water” blending the auditory idioms of early-Spiritualized and Bowery Electric. Arguably though, the best moment is saved until last – only on the CD version that is — in the form of the seven-and-half-minute “On Fire”, that embeds a thick motorik pulse into a multi-tiered wall of sound, to envisage Michael Rother mind-melding with Martin Rev and Pete ‘Sonic Boom’ Kember.
sonic edge-pushing
Whilst resolutely not for everyone,
Fade In is still a compelling collection for those most able to connect with its emotive
sonic edge-pushing.
-Adrian-
Currently conducting year-long commemorations to recognise two full decades of its stoic existence, the indomitable Sonic Cathedral label is keeping us well-stocked with new releases from both returning shoegaze pioneers in new guises and their younger disciples. Enter then, the debut full-length from Simon Scott’s side-project, Three Quarter Skies, to represent the former contingent.
