Arts Centre Vooruit, Ghent, Belgium

Phantom Limb & Earth’s Hypnagogia have recorded In Celebration of Knowing All The Blues of the Evening (UFCD1), a record which will test the endurance of many men as surely as it shreds their nerves like a swordfish. The act turns out to be a duo of American players, Jaime Fennelly and Shawn Hansen, both members of Phantom Limb, and Jaime is also part of Pee-Ess-Eye, whose avant-ish rock-noise exploits have been enjoyed in these quarters courtesy of the Evolving Ear label. Using Farfisa organ and sine-waves, the duo turn in an impressive suite of heavy-duty drones which start out sinister and subtle, gradually reaching a hysterical pitch of whiney intensity and murderous buzz as the album ends. Every creak and flutter of the performance has been captured in sharp detail, and Scott Colburn’s mastering enhances the deathly audio experience of this killer. The white sleeve here has been die-cut to create a grid of small windows, revealing small details of the very minimalist blue-grey cover within. Two postcards (stills from Hansen’s films) are inserted, and the CD is printed with an impenetrable mystical text.

Taken from the article ‘Nautical Twilight / The Crows are Laughing’ on www.thesoundprojector.com