Arbouretum Rites of Uncovering

Rites of Uncovering is a dour, turgid affair and will make the perfect Xmas present for fans of dour, turgid music. And let's face it, there are a lot of you out there. If anybody remembers the Pink Floyd track, Burning Bridges, off of Obscured by Clouds, you'll get the vibe of this record. The tempos are slow, slow, slooooooowwwww, and seriously, unless this kind of thing is your bag, man, then you are advised to stay far away. Anybody who finds Floyd "depressing" will need a fresh supply of Paxil to get through this one.

I'm actually a big Floyd fan (quick plug for the new Piper box set), but I can understand the standard criticism of the band, since Waters was bitter and xenophobic and Gilmour and Wright occasionally sang like they were napping. Yet there was still a collective mojo there that made the music come alive. Arbouretum go for a similar groove, and they are relentless. The instrumentation on the album, drums, bass, and guitar (I can't detect any obvious keyboards except for a well placed mellotron and electric piano on Signposts and Instruments. The organ sound on the last track could just as easily be a tremeloed guitar), is almost invariant, which by itself is not a problem. However, if you are going to be so repetitive in tamber and texture you better make sure you are oozing passion and Class A material. The songs aren't up to that standard, but they're actually not bad, which is why I say that lovers of this music will probably get off on it. Another plus is the bluesy, simply distorted lead guitar playing from Dave Heumann. He keeps it simple and avoids ruining the vibe with pyrotechnics. There is also a worthwhile concern for melody, which helps retain interest, and it occasionally recalls the old English folk scene and bands like The Incredible String Band, as on Tonight's a Jewel.

Some are going to write this off as boring and yes, depressing, about 15 seconds in. Fair enough - it's definitely not for them. But I think with the correct dosage of marijuana, hashish or perhaps opium, the whole thing can sound pretty attractive, and I'm not being facetious. There's sure to be a dorm room on every campus where Mogwai intensity arches and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome are de rigeur. This one's for them.