Jesse Allen’s Migrations in Rust project — one of several (Hollow Seed, Goldeater, current performer in Cowards, former member of Cathode Terror Secretion), though this one has been given the most attention — stays true to the “migratory” bit if you contrast his previous, sometimes purely ambient work with the brand new track below, and presumably the album on which it appears, Two Shadows, due out October 29 on NNA Tapes.
Likewise, there’s a certain textural quality to the music that belies straightforwardness in favor of varied sources and element interspersion. When a press release describes this complexity as a diverse (if not necessarily conscious) draw from “noise, ambient, hip hop, musique concréte, and sci-fi R&B,” I can personally confirm that there isn’t a single exaggeration here, even if “sci-fi R&B” has yet to receive coinage among any particular musically inclined group. Would humanity open up to the idea of spontaneous probings if R. Kelly simply romanticized the idea a bit in his lyrics? Doesn’t the possibility of a violent machine uprising otherwise get the blood flowing to those alluring, candle-lit nether regions? Regardless, the soulful Holy Other comes to mind.
And it’s an aspect that really shouldn’t be underemphasized. Two Shadows, the creation of which coincided with Allen’s physical migration from NYC to Western MA, seems to be a release that avoids stasis but is nonetheless consistent in its emotion, as well as its fluid multifariousness. Probably a difficult thing to pull off in practice, but have a listen for yourself, and be convinced of its feasibility:
Two Shadows tracklisting:
01. Had We Left / Doors Between
02. Two Shadows Cast
03. Canticle for Melting Gold
04. Cradled Under Fern
05. Behind My Skin
06.You’re Near
07. Drawing Down the Moon
• Migrations in Rust: https://soundcloud.com/migrationsinrust
• NNA Tapes: http://nnatapes.com
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