On stage, their music needs a lot of work and the use of all their limbs. This duo wants to do as much as possible when performing live, which is quite difficult when you're an atmospheric post-rock act. Therefore a loop station helps out a bit. It creates a solid backbone on which the band members can freely improvise along until a new song is born.
This approach makes up for some interesting minimal post-rock music which reminds me of a stripped version of bands like Explosions In The Sky or God Is An Astronaut. Calm, soothing soundscapes open most of the songs, only to burst out in a frenzy of guitars and drums. However, the immense bombastic sound which some post-rock bands possess is not extremely present here. In stead, Le_Mol focus on an intimate but convincing sound.
In this minimal sound, the band sometimes reminds me of some americana acts. 'Majorities Finest Moments' is one of those tracks that seem to cross the border between post-rock and folk or country music. After a while however, fierce distorted guitars overrule the quiet, melancholic sound, creating a perfect climax for this song.
Besides the beautiful opener 'Time To Get Pumped, Robert Pattinson', 'Esarintu' is my favourite song on this album. For the main part this is an excellent piece of modest post-rock with a stunning atmosphere and layers of sound. For being written and recorded a duo, this song is highly varied. In fact, so is the entire album.
At times, the duo takes their sense for minimalism even further. 'The Mountain Daisuke Inoue Never Sang About' for example could be trip-hop song, driving on piano and some layers of soundscapes. In that aspect there's clearly some influences from bands like A Winged Victory For The Sullen present.
Same goes for the brilliant closer 'I Despise You, Butterflies', which is a stunning piece of modern piano and post-rock. This song, the longest one on this album, suddenly even turns into a crushing doom metal track. This song clearly shows the immense diversity of this band.
In all, 'Kara Oh Kee' is an excellent piece of post-rock which will undoubtedly please a lot of people. The amount of variation between calm, tranquil passages and vigorous outbursts of sound reaches perfection. This duo can indeed compete to become a solid player in the post-rock scene, certainly if they can maintain this quality in a live-setting.
Serge