Motorcycle-Hymn-Highway

Chronique

Following his work on a short-film score, Sean Meadows (formerly of June of 44, Lungfish, and Sonora Pine) crafted a set of bleak fragmented soundscapes as he traveled by incorporating various musicians while making stops at recording studios around the world. That fact is in evidence with the somewhat loose, rambling quality of the tracks, certainly lending themselves to the stark imagery of the western plains Meadows is said to have used as inspiration. The song structures remain fairly fluid, allowing Meadows to weave light airy guitar lines around the occasional backmasked mandolin, drums, and trumpet, creating subdued but not exactly relaxing listening. Some tracks, like "From Solar Exodus (Sunburst)," sound like Tom Waits' tracks in the making, yet fade away before materializing. Rarely coalescing into straightforward arrangements, tracks like the off-kilter and off-tune "One Month Window" and the dreamy "Bastimentos By Dug Out" work well as mood music. All in all, a consistently engaging and challenging listen.
© Matt Fink /TiVo