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STEVEN R. SMITH - 'A SKETCH BOOK OF ENDINGS'

Formats

SAB090 - LP
647603403014
SAB090CD - CD
647603403021

Details

With nearly 25 years of solo recordings and releases to his credit, hermetic Californian Steven R. Smith goes back to the start with A Sketchbook Of Endings, the first solo release under his own name in eight years. Thids album continues Smith’s exploration of the intersection of moody postpunk and cinematic psychedelia, delivered in lysergic pop song-length spurts. Brevity does nothing to sacrifice density or dynamics— Smith offers both in abundance across the album’s fifteen instrumentals. These songs are packed with all of the depth, intensity and nuance that have been trademarks of his music for so long. Despite appearing under his given name, A Sketchbook Of Endings includes traces of recent work, under guises such as Ulaan Khol, Ulaan Markhor and Ulaan Passerine, as well echoes of his forebearers Mick Harvey and Rowland S. Howard. This release is a highlight of Smith’s first quarter century of activities, a beacon of his rich and varied anti-career.

Tracks

1. Careening 2. Everything In Circles 3. Copper Arches 4. The Days Have Wiped Away the Image 5. Grainstacks 6. That Which Is Many, Yet None 7. All Things That Shall Be 8. Hollow Victories In Godforsaken Lands 9. The Pale Tree 10. A Bird That Is All Birds 11. The Toppled Era 12. A Series Of Courtyards Reversed 13. The Weaving Mill 14. Let Us Return 15. Mourning Weeds