Fine dark droner called Sargo / Posidonia (COLD SPRING RECORDS CSR317CD), a split release produced by Sleep Research Facility and Llyn Y Cwn.
Sleep Research Facility is solo act Kevin Doherty (of Glasgow, now based in Canada apparently) who wowed us with his Stealth album for this label. That was 2012 and matter of fact, he hasn’t done anything between now and this release, so credit to the Cold Spring press gang for rousing him from his bed and getting him into the lifeboat. Stealth was informed by the kind of military-industrial paranoia that afflicts a few musicians on this label – well, Italian Sonologyst springs to mine – and it seemed to suggest blueprints for, and sightings of, an immensely powerful flying machine being used by the US for nefarious ends. (His Nostromo is also great, an ambient mapping out of all the levels of the spaceship from the Alien movie). Sargo makes me want to conjure up associations with the Sargasso sea, but that’s way off target and that’s not even an image of the ocean on his half of the cover art. On the other hand, “largo” is the classical musician’s way of indicating a slow tempo or a long-form, and both those apply to this ultra-ambient zoned-out meistersteppe. When they say “sound bereft of rhythm based energies”, that’s just press-agent speak for saying there are no beats, and instead it’s a way of inviting us to explore the limitless depths of these ephemeral billows. But few are able to imbue those billows with such solidity and mystery as Sleep Research Facility. One of his (and mine) favourite tricks is to mix shortwave radio voices very low in the mix, a device which only adds to the surreal, sleepwalker-mode delights. Double pillow awards to the Doherty corner.
Posidonia is by the great Welsh droner Llyn Y Cwn, author of many great burnished and heavy-duty exploits in this genre. Ben Powell’s work may appear very abstract on the surface, but is always attached to a theme, quite often an ocean-going topic. Same applies here, and it’s not just the lighthouse cover art. He did it with field recordings of the ocean made in Dorset, and also a sonar instrument that can measure water currents – all sources processed through his personal equipment (hopefully a large black box the size of a chest freezer). I never thought about it much, but his signature method might simply be to slow everything down, allowing us to perceive more richness and event in these sonics captures of his. Not just water but also pebbles and rocks; I suspect Chesil Beach was one location of choice. Both Powell and Doherty do much to open us up to new worlds, and imaginary spaces to explore. Very good. Also available as a limited vinyl LP. From 9th May 2023.