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| November 16, 2015 - Full Spectrum Records |
One of the most difficult things about creating avant-garde music is the challenge of experimenting and pushing boundaries in a way that is both un-pretentious and, well... enjoyable. For instance, if I told you that this album is an experiment in synthesizing drone and looped electronics with folk instrumentation, what is your knee jerk reaction? Any jerk with a MIDI keyboard, a looper, and a Macbook can create "experimental electronic." Only a skilled few group of artists can turn that noise into music. Over the course of fine.'s seven tracks, More Eaze, the new nom-de-music for Austin-based songwriter and producer Marcus Maurice Rubio, proves that he deserves a firm spot in that skilled group.
I first heard of and met Marcus through a mutual friend, Rick Rowley, a member of his high school band, Marcus Rubio & the Gospel Choir of Pillows. It was Rick's birthday party and MRub & the GCoP played afterwards at a little record store there in San Antonio. I was amazed. Marcus Rubio was leagues beyond any high school band leader I had ever heard. This project focused on indie rock/baroque pop and each song showed Marcus' incredible ear for melody, understanding of music theory, and general songwriting prowess.
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| From More Eaze's Discogs page |
I must admit, it's been a few years since I've listened to one of Marcus' projects. He has pushed himself well beyond the genre of indie rock into some difficult and pretty avant-garde places. As his Bandcamp describes, "He's spent his time exploring musical corners as distant as glitch, noise, folk, R&B and Wandelweiseresque stasis." (Definitely had to look up that last one.)
All of these influences are what you'll find weaved together wonderfully in the glorious, deconstructionist tapestry that is fine. The album's main attraction is the titular "fine," a 5-part, 24-minute piece, broken into 5 tracks, that covers the gamut of More Eaze's influences. "fine pt.1" begins with a brightly dissonant, oscillating organ drone, building tension over the few minutes that it lasts. Slowly, rays of colorful sound tear through the drone, here a little, there a little, fading out at random intervals, oscillating between triumphant and malfunctioning, but always under control, until the whole thing breaks apart into "fine pt.2."
This second track as well as "fine pt.3," which it bleeds into, feature a repeating loop of guitar and a down-tuned, indecipherable vocal sample in the same vein as the looped plunderphonics of Tim Hecker, or Daniel Lopatin's work in Oneohtrix Point Never, that is oddly catchy. This is punctuated by plucked guitar chords which fade into the beginnings of the straight-up folk jam of "fine pt.4." The crisply produced acoustic instrumentation serves as a well-timed palate-cleanser. Finally, the wash of styles, influences, drones, and instruments resolves itself in the finale, "fine pt.5," which is the only place on the album where we hear More Eaze's voice, which is so enjoyable to listen to, especially with its electronic warp, that I really wish there was more of it here.
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| From More Eaze's Bandcamp |
The next side of the tape kicks off with the album's best: "sure." The track is an absolute treat music theoretically. A banjo plucks a basic pattern of tonic, dominant, tonic, dominant which is bent into other strange modes and discordant melodies which, just when it seems like More Eaze is just screwing around aimlessly, resolve themselves with incredible skill. This, too, is deconstructed into a percussion-punctuated drone. Closer "ok" requires patience to get the pay-off, experimenting with those concepts of stasis and motion pioneered by Edition Wandelweiser records, but that last minute of a half is just as energetic and colorful as the opener, "fine pt.1," giving the album closure, even a conceptual feeling.
All in all, this is some of the most well-orchestrated, arresting experimental electronic I've heard in a while, easily on par with the new offerings from Oneohtrix Point Never or Jamie xx this year. Chances are this release was nowhere on your radar, so go check out More Eaze's Bandcamp, support a talented artist by downloading it for as little as a dollar, and enjoy the kaleidoscope of sound.
| OVERALL SCORE: 9.0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| more eaze – fine. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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