Encroaching - Ash In The Room Below (demo)
There is more from Bent Window Records that needs a review! The moment I saw the cassette cover artwork and the enigmatic name of the act (and the album title), I just knew that it had to be good. Of course, we know that what we are looking at looks like a thing between a newborn baby and an extraterrestrial. I'm not sure where the photo comes from, but I am sure I have seen it in one of my books about aliens, Roswell, and UFOs... or in Spielberg´s Close Encounter of the Third Kind?
Ash In The Room Below has come out as a limited 25 copies cassette, and it´s also the first official release by this elusive act. It´s a solo act with a... N.G. doing synths, I wonder who N.G. could be? Probably one of those weird isolated types from British Columbia. Maybe one day I shall find out who it is, whatever is on this tape... is absolutely pure gold!
The first track is called Illuminated War. A cold, monotonous, and dry tone slowly moves up and down, clearly getting the listener into the mood of some dead base in the Antarctic. A warped recording of something speaking through an ancient radio adds an extra element to the subtle but horrific experience.
The second track Dilapidation perfectly describes the sound of decay, and how things just... well... fall apart. A reversed sound of effect-layered windy sound, primitive synth-drones... and that awesome sounding sound of metal, maybe from some sort of rusty coil of metal? The whole track really gets under your skin. Looking out of your window, and maybe experiencing utter desolation and decay. There is really nothing out there, just emptiness. But don´t run away, these nihilistic atmospheres get me in a really good mood!
The third track Guiding Ease From The Outside has a more of a sci-fi sort of spacy sound to it. Echoed analog synth keys and a mind-mumbling background. At this point, you are quite aware that this stuff is getting into you. Strangely retrospective familiar and strangely tripping unique.
The fourth track Transfix The Eye wraps it all together in a lovely old-school proto-death-industrial sound, not that far away from Lille Roger! Everything sounds... like a small hole that the listener can see through. The sounds are incredibly intriguing and inviting as well, the recorded material wants to invite the listener inside! It´s hard to see (with your rational mind) what the hell is going on, but your irrational mind is seeing way more!
That´s the... effect of Ash In The Room Below. It doesn't expand your mind as such, but it does open a tiny peek hole into... well, another place. There is a great nostalgic touch here and there, about how analog shit being recorded in Vancouver just works! The album is really tense and dark, but the seducing sound just keeps on inviting the listener further inside... until you are pleasantly lost. Is there ash in the room below? ... There is, we just don´t know where the ash comes from... we really don´t!.
