Splendid
written by: Mike Baker (08.03.2004)
Sadly, we live in an indie-rock climate so inundated by instrumental outfits who hope that their lack of vocals will translate as "cinematic" that the thought of yet another all-male alt-instrumental group is enough to make me shudder. The reality is that many of these bands do it to themselves, circulating press releases and building websites on the premise that they are somehow kindred spirits with the likes of Mogwai, Tortoise and Godspeed You! Black Emperor. The fact of the matter is that few, if any, of these young groups sound anything like their favorite bands -- unless, of course, they are following the formula so faithfully that they lack even a shred of originality.
But every so often, just as I'm about to lose all hope that there's something new to be found, an instrumental band captures my imagination by actually writing songs to go along with their carefully sculpted sound. It happened with Explosions In The Sky, it's happening with Below The Sea, and it seems that This Is A Process Of A Still Life has got it in spades. Steering clear of the verse/chorus/explosive climax formula that characterizes the best and worst of the failing genre, This Is A Process... deal in decidedly organic, downtempo and introspective sounds. It's Explosions In The Sky gone acoustic, and it's scary that it could be this good.
True, this Missoula, Montana-based quintet, who share their hometown with the brand-spanking new Firefly Sessions imprint (Missoula is also the birthplace of David Lynch, for you wannabe cinephiles out there), bear a dangerously close resemblance to the epic, melancholic likes of Tarentel, Sonna and Mi Media Naranja-era Labradford -- but unlike their more established counterparts, the young This Is A Process convince me that their interpretation of the form is every bit as vital as those albums I've come to know inside and out.
The traps of the formula, so to speak, remain on display for all to see, but This Is A Process offer a genuinely engaging take that far exceeds my expectations. A weepy melodica rings out across "Skywriting Over Virginia" as though it was missing its home in a Múm lullaby or Tortoise's classic "Night Air". A glockenspiel plays a significant melodic role on both "No Memory of the Airshow" and "Pretty Is Predictable", nestling snugly alongside a lazily sliding guitar line, essentially Explosions In The Sky without the dramatic crescendo. None of the this is to say that this approach to instrumentation began, and belongs with, the current crop of the alt-instrumentalists on Temporary Residence, but the comparisons will inevitably be made. Once word gets out about This Is A Process, expectations for this astonishing debut (there, I said it) will undoubtedly be high.
Welcome to the crowd, This Is A Process Of A Still Life. You may soon be leading the pack..
