One cannot deny that Well Kept Thing <\/i>is deeply \u201ctechnical,\u201d musically. For example, \u201cGottlieb Deux\u201d is the kind of number that you would find nowhere, but in a record that one thinks of when one hears the term \u201ctechnical\u201d \u2013 made up of stellar musicianship driven by complex rhythm, where the guitars, bass, and drums are like parts of a sophisticated machine, working together with flawless precision.<\/p>\n
However, opening track \u201cAfter The Walk\u201d is soft and comforting, and couldn\u2019t be more different. Driven, not by pounding rhythmic drums, but by a tender piano hook, its music is not about showing off each musician\u2019s talent, but about creating a haunting atmosphere that feels heartfelt. This is a daydreaming psychedelic cut that feels human, especially with its heartwarming sans-lyrics vocals, and is far from the machine-like \u201cGottlieb Deux.\u201d Yet, both these diametrically opposite tracks are equally good, and are album highlights: This is the story of Well Kept Thing<\/i>, a rather cerebral precision math rock record that can also connect with the listener on an emotional level. <\/p>\n
On another album highlight \u201cCalm Blood,\u201d the two disparate aspects of the album mingle fluidly, on a song, which on one hand, is led by an intricate mathematical drumming pattern, and on the other, has interwoven guitars and synthesizers that create a dreamy and melodic \u2013 almost silky-smooth \u2013 musical fabric around the pummeling drums.<\/p>\n
As an instrumental album (except for two songs), Well Kept Thing<\/i> has a cinematic quality in general, where sweeping melodies meet with challenging rhythms. \u201cGottlieb\u2019s Dragon,\u201d for instance, is a gritty rock number, consisting of a trumpet (yes, this record has lots of this) solo, with an inescapable movie-like dramatic feel, which works marvellously well.<\/p>\n
The \u201cfilm score\u201d element works great on most of this disc, except however for the last two cuts, \u201cEight Belles At Midnight\u201d and \u201cPine Resin Transfer Amber Hands,\u201d both of which are slow, and lack the math rock rhythmic component. \u201cEight Belles At Midnight\u201d is just spacey atmospherics begging to go unnoticed. \u201cPine Resin Transfer Amber Hands,\u201d consists primarily of a combination of boringly lifeless music and new-agey vocals. But before the last minute or so, it come to life, when the drums along with blaring trumpets kick in, completely changing its dynamics. Unfortunately, this shift in direction comes in too late, as by this time, the listener has probably lost all interest in the song.<\/p>\n
By the same token, \u201cEnlist Now\u201d is also a slow cut that\u2019s without the rhythmic backbone. But this acoustic number, with twangy guitars and somber and reflecting trumpet solo, has the cinematic effect of a western, which not only sounds cool, but adds an unexpected twist to the disc, since this is the only song of its kind here.<\/p>\n
Well Kept Thing <\/i>took 12 years in the making. It was recorded in parts virtually, by band members, who had other commitments, like day jobs and families. In the light of this, it is hard to believe how cohesive this disc is, and especially how warm it feels for a collection of improvised instrumental music. Well Kept Thing <\/i>is not merely a deftly executed \u201ctechnical\u201d album, but one that has a heart.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":33615,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[10259],"rating":[5617],"class_list":["post-45436","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-foxhole","rating-rating-b-plus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/45436","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45436"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/45436\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45436"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=45436"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=45436"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}