The word drone, in its many forms, always seems to imply a sort of subterranean feel — an existence just outside of immediate consciousness. Take drone strikes, for example. They happen from a nearly undetectable mechanical force that seems to come from nowhere and disappear as quickly as they came. A military force with no visible military presence. The idea is the same when referring to worker drones. Employees capable of doing the work on a nearly unconscious level, their minds wandering elsewhere in order to retain sanity.
Drone, as a music style/genre, works the same way: a tuning out that exists below our surface consciousness, accented only by little spikes that attack from nowhere and decay as quickly or slowly as they came. The way artists incorporate these peaks above the surface is what seems to differentiate most drone music; it’s the way the song pulls you from the quicksand that all drone often spends the first minutes dragging you into.
The new tape from Miracle Blues, Fullerton Avenue Rhythm Arranger, on Lillerne Tapes is a perfect example of this format. The first minutes are spent pulling you down into a pool of synth waves, just shallow (as in not deep) enough to be seen and, therefore, mesmerizing. And just before you are entirely submerged, little spikes of gurgling drum noises begin to bubble up from the surface, followed by a detuned spike of noise to snap you out of your trance. It’s patient and subtle and paced in such a way that it doesn’t allow you to tune out. This one demands your attention at the very moments you are ready to give it up.
Take the plunge below, and buy the entire thing over at Lillerne Tapes.
• Lillerne Tapes: http://www.lillernetapes.com
More about: Miracle Blues
