![]() That's not to say it's weak or somehow less effective indeed, I'd argue that Judith Ren-Lay is more likely to bring people into the experimental fold because her work is not about the Other, as is so much other avant-garde endeavour. Out Of Nowhere succeeds most because it's experimental by stealth. This is where it's at, frankly - the vocal effects and wavering strings communicate more pain than most indie rock manages in a lifetime. It's a powerful track, one that king-hits the listener with its coupling of musical understatement and the raw primacy of the wailing spiritual. Elsewhere, shades of Indian music are applied to Ren-Lay's vision: "Ophelia" is a low-key, drone-filled excursion, featuring channels of voice that evoke the corpse-bearing river. The languid feel it conveys makes you forget that the tones you're hearing - which often sound like an electrical hum - originate from a human throat "Creature Parade" and "In Cages" are some of the most amazing sounds I've heard a human make. "Born" has far-off tones, evocative of light heliographing across a lens, layered across the top of an almost-Bill Frisell guitar backing. The sense of calm that works across this disc - with moments of heightened tension being occasional, rather than standard - functions positively here. A tale of death and creation is played out over frantic cello lines. There's a burred softness here: "Genii"'s sense of vocal play is a Galas-meets-Faithfull moment that's quite delightful, lyrics notwithstanding. ![]() In a way, this recording is more pastoral than any of Galas' work there's a feeling of ambient folksiness that's almost at odds with the operatic swoops displayed throughout. The incomprehensibility, coupled with complete, muscular control of the voice in this regard (take album-opener "On The Table", for example), are similar and equally strong. That said, Diamanda Galas comes to mind occasionally when listening to Ren-Lay's intonations - particularly when Ren-Lay spits out passages in rapid-fire mode. Of softness, even: the disc is understated, for the most part, and lacks many of the facets that make other works of vocal experimentation an acquired taste, at best. Judith Ren-Lay has been a respected figure in the world of experimental performance for a number of years, and this album - the tunes on which were originally drawn from unrehearsed gigs of improvised duets - sees her stretching in a direction that experimentalism rarely follows: that of subtlety. ".some of the most amazing sounds I've heard a human make."įull text of review by Luke Martin, Splendidezine online This attachment, this familiarity, this is the heart of the disc." ![]() Ren-Lay is interested in the personal, in what's inside. "Out of Nowhere succeeds mostly because it's experimental by stealth. "Out of Nowhere is one of the best records so far in 2002, a unique collection of sounds that transcend the arbitrary genre boundaries." Of "Out Of Nowhere" 2002 Knitting Factory cd release ![]()
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