TO ROCOCO ROT

For the uninitiated, Germany's To Rococo Rot don't follow any stereotypical path of other Teutonic outfits - you won't find brutal electronic beats or precision performance art here - moreover you're more likely to feel reflective and relaxed after a dose of their organic experimentation.

With avant-garde guitarist and luminary Arto Lindsay on board, you'd be forgiven that this might be more left-field than ever. But, think again. Instrument is soft, lush and forgiving for the most part with many tracks merely atmospheric vignettes aimed at the mind more than the feet. In fact only the short Sunrise resembles anything atonal with the rest of the album similar to just about anything Bureau B is putting out. The exceptions are the Lindsay vocal collaborations such as Classify and Many Descriptions and the closing drone-track The Longest Escalator In The World, all of which twitch and buzz past in a sedentary manner. Of the remaining pieces, Down In The Traffic bears a few hallmarks from prog-rock and Baritone almost, almost, passes muster as a dance-track for a few seconds. Intriguing.

This review also appeared on Flipside Reviews

Paul PLEDGER
02/10/2014