post rock / psychedelic
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The Fall
It's been a week since I left Zottegem after the fabulous Dunk! Festival and I'm already looking forward to next year's edition. I wasn't really planning on writing this review today but the sheer quality of the music on 'The Fall' dragged me right back to Zottegem. I can't help it, every time I hear a great post-rock album, I imagine myself being part of the audience again, while the band performs their magic on stage.
We received three albums by Tiny Fingers, a psychedelic post-rock band from Tel Aviv, Israel. They are one of the leading forces in the Israeli alternative music scene, and with good reason too. The already toured Europe, USA and Asia and opened for The Mars Volta, Dub Trio and even Damian Marley. And their music? Well, that seems to be a highly surprising blend of post-rock, live electronics, psychedelic rock and even dubstep. And now, I'm reviewing three albums at once.
'The Fall' is their fifth album, one in which Tiny Fingers take their custom sound to the next level. According to guitarist Oren Ben David, "The album is a riddle, every track is a chapter in a true story about fear and hope, anxiety, deep realistic confusion". I couldn't have said it better myself. This is indeed an adventurous piece of work, harboring some of the most immersive pieces of post-rock I've heard in awhile.
The album opens with title track 'The Fall', which immediately crosses the borders between rock music and live electronics. The electronics kick off, making you wonder whether this is going to be a dance album or not. Gradually however, the typical atmospheric elements of post-rock fade in and after about two minutes you'll be immersed in these brilliant soundscapes. 65 Days Of Static comes to mind, as they often will while listening to this album.
I really like the conceptual feel of this full-length. 'Eyes Of Gold' is perfectly mixed with its predecessor, seems to stop and begin building up the anticipation for what's still to come. 'Traveller Soul' continues the weird electronics of 'Eyes Of Gold' but gradually turns the whole thing into a Tangerine Dream meets Monkey3 kind of thing. Awesome for sure but believe it or not, the best track is still to come.
And that is 'Deuteronomy'. It had me staring at my speakers in disbelief; and soon after I was imagining this song live at Dunk Festival, which gave me an eargasm. It starts out like pretty much any post-rock track: a guitar line, minimal drums and some soundscapes but then it happens. The electronics come in, making you wonder what's going on. Then, suddenly the whole thing explodes into a massive blend of heavy post-rock, seventies electronica and dubstep.
At this moment, I was sold and decided to write this whole thing, which will probably become my longest review ever. I mean, there's still five more songs to come on this album. 'Drops' is a quiet, gentle breather, with some jazzy drums. 'The Other' shows what Venetian Snares would do with post-rock. Damn, what a load of energy this song is. Back on Dunk! Festival, the tent would explode again.
You know what, I'll leave the three other songs up to you to discover, which obviously means that I recommend this album to any post-rocker out there. If you like 65 Days Of Static, PG Lost & Tortoise, you will also adore this little gem. Fact remains, these guys know a little something about atmosphere, about surprising hooks and twists. The album continuously alternates between grandeur, bombast, soothing passages and sheer energy. You need this...
We received three albums by Tiny Fingers, a psychedelic post-rock band from Tel Aviv, Israel. They are one of the leading forces in the Israeli alternative music scene, and with good reason too. The already toured Europe, USA and Asia and opened for The Mars Volta, Dub Trio and even Damian Marley. And their music? Well, that seems to be a highly surprising blend of post-rock, live electronics, psychedelic rock and even dubstep. And now, I'm reviewing three albums at once.
'The Fall' is their fifth album, one in which Tiny Fingers take their custom sound to the next level. According to guitarist Oren Ben David, "The album is a riddle, every track is a chapter in a true story about fear and hope, anxiety, deep realistic confusion". I couldn't have said it better myself. This is indeed an adventurous piece of work, harboring some of the most immersive pieces of post-rock I've heard in awhile.
The album opens with title track 'The Fall', which immediately crosses the borders between rock music and live electronics. The electronics kick off, making you wonder whether this is going to be a dance album or not. Gradually however, the typical atmospheric elements of post-rock fade in and after about two minutes you'll be immersed in these brilliant soundscapes. 65 Days Of Static comes to mind, as they often will while listening to this album.
I really like the conceptual feel of this full-length. 'Eyes Of Gold' is perfectly mixed with its predecessor, seems to stop and begin building up the anticipation for what's still to come. 'Traveller Soul' continues the weird electronics of 'Eyes Of Gold' but gradually turns the whole thing into a Tangerine Dream meets Monkey3 kind of thing. Awesome for sure but believe it or not, the best track is still to come.
And that is 'Deuteronomy'. It had me staring at my speakers in disbelief; and soon after I was imagining this song live at Dunk Festival, which gave me an eargasm. It starts out like pretty much any post-rock track: a guitar line, minimal drums and some soundscapes but then it happens. The electronics come in, making you wonder what's going on. Then, suddenly the whole thing explodes into a massive blend of heavy post-rock, seventies electronica and dubstep.
At this moment, I was sold and decided to write this whole thing, which will probably become my longest review ever. I mean, there's still five more songs to come on this album. 'Drops' is a quiet, gentle breather, with some jazzy drums. 'The Other' shows what Venetian Snares would do with post-rock. Damn, what a load of energy this song is. Back on Dunk! Festival, the tent would explode again.
You know what, I'll leave the three other songs up to you to discover, which obviously means that I recommend this album to any post-rocker out there. If you like 65 Days Of Static, PG Lost & Tortoise, you will also adore this little gem. Fact remains, these guys know a little something about atmosphere, about surprising hooks and twists. The album continuously alternates between grandeur, bombast, soothing passages and sheer energy. You need this...
We Are Being Held By The Dispatcher
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'We Are Being Held By The Dispatcher' was recorded live in the Momek Studio in New York when the band had a day off from touring. It's shows a more playful side of Tiny Fingers, one that like to improvise with previously recorded bits and pieces. The result is a strange piece of work that reminds me a bit of acts like Black Dice. This album too has a conceptual feel as the songs seem to blend in with each other.
For this album, the band used a number of speeches from Malcolm X, along with their loose and experimental approach to post-rock. These samples actually add a lot to the music. The strange music, I might add. This album really is way different from 'The Fall'. It feels more like a psychedelic noise rock album than a post-rock thing, but that's perfectly fine. It shows how versatile these musicians really are.
I'm not going into a track-by-track description on this one but rest assured that songs like 'Space Slavery', 'Madrugada' and '1965' will surprise you and quite possibly blow your mind. I wish I'd been at that recording studio when Tiny Fingers recorded this material. I'm sure that they had loads and loads of fun playing and recording this album. You can sense that fun, that playfulness and that awesome feeling of jamming.
For this album, the band used a number of speeches from Malcolm X, along with their loose and experimental approach to post-rock. These samples actually add a lot to the music. The strange music, I might add. This album really is way different from 'The Fall'. It feels more like a psychedelic noise rock album than a post-rock thing, but that's perfectly fine. It shows how versatile these musicians really are.
I'm not going into a track-by-track description on this one but rest assured that songs like 'Space Slavery', 'Madrugada' and '1965' will surprise you and quite possibly blow your mind. I wish I'd been at that recording studio when Tiny Fingers recorded this material. I'm sure that they had loads and loads of fun playing and recording this album. You can sense that fun, that playfulness and that awesome feeling of jamming.
Megafauna
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Also recorded live in the studio, and also in 2012, 'Megafauna' showcases the band's relentless energy with a clean studio production. During the time, the band members were going through a lot of changes in their lives, both personally and professionally. Before recording the album, they spent three weeks together, writing, jamming, improving. That resulted in an artistic and technical journey which none of them could have imagined.
After the intro, 'Demands' turns this into the weirdest and most nervous sounds I've heard from Tiny Fingers. This song in itself is quite an adventurous one, at times pretty dark and gritty. The whole album actually is. Sometimes it delves deep into the fuzz-loaded stoner rock scene, adding influences from bands like Monkey 3, Karma To Burn or Colour Haze. But, because of the electronics, I'm mostly reminded of 65 Days Of Static.
'Preloader' is one heavy piece of rock, repetitive, gloomy and intense. Like most of the tracks here, I'm often reminded of Kong, my all time favorite instrumental band. 'Pasadena Matador' also seems to have some Ozric Tentacles influences to show, which obviously is a good sign. But the most surprising track here is the fierce rock song 'Money-Time' which will make you bang your head.
After the intro, 'Demands' turns this into the weirdest and most nervous sounds I've heard from Tiny Fingers. This song in itself is quite an adventurous one, at times pretty dark and gritty. The whole album actually is. Sometimes it delves deep into the fuzz-loaded stoner rock scene, adding influences from bands like Monkey 3, Karma To Burn or Colour Haze. But, because of the electronics, I'm mostly reminded of 65 Days Of Static.
'Preloader' is one heavy piece of rock, repetitive, gloomy and intense. Like most of the tracks here, I'm often reminded of Kong, my all time favorite instrumental band. 'Pasadena Matador' also seems to have some Ozric Tentacles influences to show, which obviously is a good sign. But the most surprising track here is the fierce rock song 'Money-Time' which will make you bang your head.
The verdict
Suppose you have the money to buy only one of these three albums. Obviously at first I'd advise you to save money to buy all three. Second, I'll try to recommend each album, based on your preferences.
If you're in for dark, stoner rock inspired instrumental music with loads of atmosphere, buy 'Megafauna'.
If you like playful jamming and vocal samples, get your hands on 'We Are Being Held By The Dispatcher'.
If you like an immersive and psychedelic whirlpool of post-rock and electronics, you need 'The Fall' in your life.
Serge
If you're in for dark, stoner rock inspired instrumental music with loads of atmosphere, buy 'Megafauna'.
If you like playful jamming and vocal samples, get your hands on 'We Are Being Held By The Dispatcher'.
If you like an immersive and psychedelic whirlpool of post-rock and electronics, you need 'The Fall' in your life.
Serge