How Brad Heyne & Josh Mason will avoid allusions to Tim Hecker, who knows? Vapor takes such a journey, tapped into the piano drones and odd timbres of many clever souls, yet it’s wholly its own piece of precision. Heyne’s compositions drive the tempo, barren piano that is patient and gorgeous. Mason messes it all up with static, manipulation, and production, until the whole thing is but a fragile experiment in gratification. Vapor takes its time, waltzing in and out of the room like a toddler playing with space. A note will fade as others barge in without care. The silence is deafening, until a strand of distortion or a gentle drone invades the serenity, bringing its own calming effect. Vapor is a string of comparisons: Hakobune, Earn, Tim Hecker, Rameses III, Richard Skelton. But it is none of these. For all its similarities, it will be the differences that pile on and change your habits. They are minor, but they are worth the hunt. Gingerly chase down the frolicking child, hide behind a curtain or a doorjamb to catch a hint of genuine behavior.
More about: Brad Heyne & Josh Mason
