Friday, April 11, 2014

Ant'lrd - Biblioteca Nod Out (Baro33)







a tasty nug for high times. peace and love to my friends at Humboldt Relief :)


Churning clouds are strewn over pulsating ambient collages that exude murky warm hues and dusty emanations on Biblioteca Nod Out, from Ant'lrd, the project of Chicago's Colin Blanton. Recently released on BARO Records, Biblioteca Nod Out covers some blissful terrain - different from many ambient tapes I've heard lately - characterized by a dreamy quiescence that suffuses the atmosphere throughout. Fans of the SCKE// release on Kiks/GFR will dig these vibes. This tape is a tale of two sides. Where as side A drifts through the inviting haze with the collages merging below the radar, the flipside contains two long-form tracks comprised of loops. Side A starts with foggy tape moves that whirl frenetically as opaque tones sit in the back. Blurry waves, beats and samples negotiate the engulfing opacity. Incipient energy glimmers in the indica haze and soon becomes concentrated. Shortly, clouds impinge to make the bass and drone loops faint. Before long, light and airy vibrations circulate torpidly. The latter parts of side A are excellent; pale tones chime frantically vacillating in a gale before giving way to unstable ambient energy burning brightly in the navy sky above undulating waves. Two longer compositions - A Mellow Hum for Cycling in the City pt. 1 and pt. 2 - are contained on the flipside. In pt.1, warm and airy waves of ambient sound are cloaked by persistently encroaching haze. Occasional buoyant tones jut out from the clouds. Obtuse tones wallow pleasantly, often buoyed by intermittent waves of luminous energy in the latter.

Released in an edition of 100 cassettes with orange shells, the heady artwork by Charlie Megna matches the vibes on offer. Biblioteca Nod Out may be purchased directly from BARO.

peace and love, friends :)