When I first started working here I remember one of the first CDs I ever brought into the store was Blues Control’s self titled albums on Holy Mountain. Not a week went by of it sitting here before fellow co-worker Jerry picked it up and I knew our tastes would cross paths pretty often after that. It’s hard to believe that two years has passed since then but then you think about being without a new Blues Control record that long and it sort of seems like an eternity.
Blues Control is a two piece from Queens, NY whom recently moved to Richmond, VA consisting of Lea Cho and Russ Waterhouse. They play everything from guitar to keyboards to tape collages. They are not alone on this record though as they do see a couple guest appearances, most notably by store favorite Kurt Vile who plays trumpet on the track “Good Morning” and acoustic guitar on the track “Rest on Water.”
The album’s starter, “Good Morning” begins as a psychedelic krautrock romp with keyboard and drums in the front of it all that doesn’t set the tone for the rest of the album at all. The rest of the albums tone is set with “Rest on Water” which is a trancing ambient track with saxophone drifting in and out throughout the track. The final track on the album, “On Through the Night” is nearly 17 minutes long and shows the band using the rooms reverb as an instrument as much as the instruments themselves. A very claustrophobic song that seems to be closing in on you as the seconds tick by. Absolutely excellent.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser."Tangier" from Blues Control's 2009 album Local Flavor
Honorable mentions for July 14 Record of the Week:
- Yob – The Great Cessation (Profound Lore)
- Discovery – LP (XL)
- Alexander Turnquist – As the Twilight Crane Dreams in Color (VHF)
