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Plants
and Animals
Self-titled CDEP
Self-released
Genres: instrumental folk, instrumental rock
Nov 29 - Dec 5 2004 |
Every time I sit down to review a disc I know nothing about, I always
tell myself: "I HOPE THIS ISN'T ANOTHER BLOODY INSTRUMENTAL
ALBUM." And roughly 75% of the time, it is. So I give
it a quick listen, jot down my opinions, and then throw it in the pile
of CDs I never intend to come back to. I don't know if it's some
sort of indie rock vocal shyness or what, but a terribly large portion
of independent music is devoid of vocals - a surprising trend, seeing
as instrumental music is extremely hard to do well (and nearly
impossible to make generally appealing.) Which brings us to the present story. The time came (or
rather, the time was well overdue) for Plants and Animals'
intriguingly designed EP to be reviewed, and I placed it in my CD
player without any real expectations. I was prepared for indie pop or
electronica, to tell the truth. But it only took the opening
track's fourteen minute duration to realize what
I had actually stumbled upon - INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC!!!! NO!!!
My weekend, quite simply, was ruined.
That was, until I took a closer look. Instead of playing your
standard instrumental pop/rock, Plants and Animals are more of
a folk group - in the tradition of John Fahey and Steffen
Basho-Junghans, this three piece plays predominantly acoustic folk,
driven by rolling guitars and skilled plucking. However, P&A's
music is more accessible than is often
encountered in the genre. "Boyfriends and
Girlfriends," though lengthy, is surprisingly infectious;
"Jacques: The New St. Henri Hi-Step," meanwhile, is given a
fresh sound by way of a percussion-heavy climax. Even the
quiet finale (whose title is too long to type out here) is accessibly
endearing, in a low-key, pretty way - its climax is a bit weak,
however.
If all instrumental albums were like this, they'd be a little more
excusable. Though Plants and Animals' EP will require a
fair amount of patience to the unassimilated listener, it should make
for a surprisingly strong moodpiece.
80%
Matt Shimmer [Vitals:
5 tracks, distributed by the
band, released 2004] |
