As Above So Below… Mini but stalagmitey
Review: Azure Ray – As Above So Below
Published on September 4th, 2012 | Jonny Abrams
Athens, Georgia duo Maria Taylor and Orenda Fink rope in the latter’s husband Todd, also of The Faint, to imbue this new, six-track mini-album with more electronic properties than their past releases together as Azure Ray. Naturally it works a treat, and ‘naturally’ is an operative choice of word given how seamlessly this new dimension is integrated into their already dreamy sound.
“Scattered Like Leaves” sounds like Snap!’s “The Power” on a strangely beautiful comedown, laying down the marker with its gentle harmonies, breathy delivery and shuddering, slowly paced electronica, while the darkly sublime “Unannounced” presents us with weird, whirring noise and declares “this is how I say goodbye”. We’re now rather keen to hear how they say hello.
“To This Life” is starkly minimal in places but no less lovely for it, its glowing synthery forming a more disparate landscape across it, but “We Could Wake” steals the show by dint of mesmerising, otherworldly psych-lite: an application of thunderous synth bass here, a splash of menacing whooshing sounds there, it’s wonderful stuff and worth the asking price on its own. That it is but one-sixth of this splendid mini-album’s population should be reason enough for you to investigate, but it does seem a shame that it wasn’t extrapolated into an album.
Rocksucker says: Three and a Half Quails out of Five!
As Above So Below will be released on 10th September through Affairs of the Heart. For more information please visit www.azureraymusic.com
About the Author
Jonny Abrams Editor of Rocksucker and the website's founder, Jonny is passionate about the music he listens to, both good and bad, as well as interviewing his favourite musicians.
