The Sight Below is the background sound that sets the tone for those lonely nights. Swirling underwater guitars on loop -Â echo, hymn and wail. The ache is intense and yet comforting at the same time. This is too forward-thinking for shoegaze, too intimate to be called ambient.
It is the whirling prelude to a Godspeed You! Black Emperor song that never waivers, that rolls on without any build-up or form.
It is beat-less and yet the moody ebb and flow of the drone and quiet noises somehow arrange themselves into sense and rhythm.
[Video: The Sight Below - New Dawn Fades (Joy Division Cover)]
In Glider, we become reconciled with the drone and the hushed soft-peddaled techno bass drum kick.
But in the recently released It Falls Apart, with a collaboration with Simon Scott of Slowdive, the techno experimentation is discarded, such that the focus on the ambient sounds becomes all-consuming. Worthy also of mention is the inclusion of New Dawn Fades, a cover of Joy Division: there is no massacre of intent, the song retains its authenticity and this version is even more achingly painful than the original.
The Sight Below is not depressing: there is far too much depth to weigh you down. Yes, it is somewhat bleak, but the rich textures and layers are so satisfyingly fulfilling that you cant help but feel blown away.
Buy It Falls Apart on iTunes here.
I also recommend you download his free first ep No Place For Us on Ghostly here.
