Tides
Resurface
8.3
I thought I’d get this one out close to my Red Sparowes review as they are very similar; droning instrumental waves of heavy elegance and gaunt atmospherics that are a no brainer for fans waiting for the impending Pelican album. Hailing from upstate New York, this young band has all the pieces to elbow their way into the crowd of Isis, Pelican and Neurosis with an air of confidence and the musical ability to match.
The band's name sums up the material perfectly as the album ebbs and flows with a taught delivery that fulfills more than Red Sparowes’ climax-less artistry but still teams with the same hypnotic ambience and swirling soundscapes. The album consists of three, 10-minute-plus forays into ebbing, building crescendos of ambience and three shorter ethereal, more experimental segues. Now, my copy had no track listing, but when the album hypnotizes like it does, song names are irrelevant compared to the journey the album takes you on.
The 12 minute track 1 opens with a surprising suddenness rather than lull the listener into its eventual peak and flows with apt peaks and valleys that have far more weight than Red Sparowes. They are similar to Isis, but without the vocals. The drum work rolls and foams like the tide crashing on the shore and are understated but perfectly implemented while the guitars start with a sturdy crunch before shifting into a more pitchy, droning atmosphere. The first short track, track 2, features delicate acoustics and more atonal sound scapes vying for time with a sort of barren subway hum. Track 3 has an almost Southern vibe to it before some tremolo picking gives way to an expected climax that’s satisfying but not overwrought or forgetful of the preceding build, it’s not going to shake your being or rattle your filings but it provides a little more girth than Red Sparowes. Another 5 minute segue featuring lapping water and sublime ‘whale song’ acoustics that could have come from Oceanic follows before allowing the final 11 minute track to grace you with shimmering tones and a more direct approach to introspective instrumentation.
Describing an album like Resurface in words is hard. Albums like this need to be heard and felt, not littered with adjectives and prose. However, I will say the forty plus minute trip is an exceptional piece of elegant art that easily measures up to the genres' big names and deserves your undivided active listening skills.
Now about that label name...
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TidesFrom Silence
3/12/2006