Demdike Stare
WADING THROUGH MURKY sound waves, entranced in a trawl of drones, a lateral soundscape swamp of industrial groans and nocturnal moans blankets a moonless night.
The Manchester duo Demdike Stare (Sean Canty and Miles Whittaker) is hiding somewhere in the shadows, orchestrating bellowing hums with their latest anthology Tryptych, which combines their previous three EPs, Forest Of Evil, Liberation Through Hearing, and Voices Of Dust, with a couple extra tracks sprinkled on top for your pleasure.
It’s easy to characterize Demdike Stare’s sound as ominous, perfect for a David Lynch soundtrack and about a beat away from becoming pure noise.
Yet there is a latent Eastern influence laced throughout their tracks, whether it’s the Tibetan throat singing conjured up throughout the series or the didgeridoo-like sounds in “The Stars Are Moving”, stretching Demdike Stare’s sound beyond these go-to characterizations to a more complex, diverse, and deeply textured creation. The drones completely hypnotize while the persistent hammering beat allows you to stay engaged in a whirl of abstract booms.
“Hashshashin Chant” has a high intensity, tribal feel. “Forest Of Evil (Dawn)” bangs with infernal drums, only to ease it up with a jangled classical violin loop.
Although time consuming, Tryptych pushes the limits of contemporary music to a hazy realm that’s unfamiliar yet extremely intriguing. Check out the video and all three albums if you’re down to take the trip.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/17764352]
jazner 
May 25, 2011 at 9:57 pm
[…] crawls under the skin with creepiness. Check out the 3 piece anthology Tryptych and a previous jazner piece for more on the duo. GA_googleAddAttr("AdOpt", "1"); GA_googleAddAttr("Origin", "other"); […]