Tiny Dynamine

Album review

Released in tandem with the Echoes in a Shallow Bay EP and each essentially a companion piece to the other -- the cover art and design alone are virtually clones -- Tiny Dynamine documents a more relaxed Cocteau Twins. The band steps away more from the intense drama often brought to earlier albums and singles, indirectly signaling the equally calm but striking work that would surface on Victorialand and The Moon and the Melodies. "Pink Orange Red" would turn into a longtime favorite of the group's, played on later tours and remade for the Twinlights EP nearly a decade later. A heartbreakingly beautiful Guthrie guitar opens the track, echoing and liquid, with Fraser's vocal coming in a few chords later. Raymonde's bass and the drum machine kick in a full-band arrangement, while Guthrie's descending guitar lines after each verse provide the icing on the cake. The instrumental "Ribbed and Veined" has some fine Guthrie chiming and a loping percussion beat to recommend it, while "Sultitan Itan" is fair but not quite as strong in comparison, nice multi-tracking of Fraser's vocals on the chorus aside. "Plain Tiger" concludes the EP on a slightly playful note, an upbeat little rhythm groove on the verses alternating with a more strident tone on the chorus, Fraser's voice being much more staccato at the latter points.
© Ned Raggett /TiVo