Sometimes Eavesdropping puts me to sleep.
Scientists may be falling behind when it comes to space exploration but artists keep pushing hard. Future-sound minimalist band Lazer Sword is not to be overlooked in this desire to return to science fiction’s most creative arena. So on Memory, their new album, we get a voyeuristic glimpse of life on a technologically advanced craft.
Maybe the whole album doesn’t offer that atmospheric approach that feels like eaves dropping on a space crew going about their daily lives. On the opening track, “Sky Burial”, the band starts the album off with sporadic clicks, keyboard atmospherics that sound foreboding, and a muffled, scratchy voice. The introduction blends nicely into the following track which carries over the sporadic blips, keyboard, and distant vocals. Only this time we get a sense of urgency, as if, some emergency has forced a red light on and everything is being rushed. Here the minimalism provides a space for the listener to advance their own private exposition, and with the distorted and possibly foreign language dialogue allows for imagination to fill in the blanks.
Much of the album follows this established dynamic and feels like an alien rave with discreetly hidden subliminal messages sung or expressed in a females 80’s R&B vocal. Some dub step elements are present, some shaken instruments can be heard, but the real star of this album is the blips, which can sometimes make it easy to zone out. On songs like Let’s Work (ft. Jimmy Edgar) it’s easy to fall asleep before the vocals even jump in. If you make it past the slow introduction Jimmy Edgar brings a sexy fast paced recitation that evokes Matthew Dear. Unfortunately the track is more concerned with giving us music simple enough to not get distracted while driving.
The last tracks of the album blend together enough that whatever 20-minutes worth of music is present are rapidly over.
Standout tracks: Sky Burial, Toldyall
