Melody Tomb

The Leaf Librarys sprawling discography includes albums that blur the lines between lush indie pop and post-rock experimentation, as well as numerous drone and improv pieces. Melody Tomb, a collaboration with Japanese ambient artist Teruyuki Kurihara, surprisingly appears on Mille Plateaux, a pioneering glitch/IDM label with a long, complicated history. Much darker and more electronic than most Leaf Library releases, Melody Tomb is either an outlier in their discography or a bold new direction for the group, as theyve stated that they want to continue working with Kurihara on other projects. Originating from synth drone pieces recorded by the group, Kurihara added rumbling post-industrial beats and noisy textures, approaching Pan Sonic levels of abrasion on the startling opener "Distal." "Kite Beach" is much friendlier, with synth melodies bubbling in an effervescent haze. Thats about as bright and playful as the album gets, as most of the tracks consist of brittle distortion, grainy loops, and fragmented instrumentation. "Paper Area" starts with a harsh blast of interference, then develops a mutated rhythm that slithers across the frigid landscape. "Artefact" surrounds booming drum machines with swarming, scuttling noises, and "Boundary" places shuffling breakbeats and watery movements under its intense crackling and disorienting vibrations. "Vertical Margins" starts out with vague traces of violin strokes looped over distant pulsations and mechanical humming, building to a disorienting crescendo, then abruptly cutting the noise out and back in multiple times. Adjust your expectations, if you have any to begin with, and Melody Tomb is a pretty fascinating exploration of hidden sounds and extreme dynamics. ~ Paul Simpson