Bear in Heaven
Beast Rest Forth Mouth
Hometapes
The urgent electronic sound of this Bear in Heaven CD occupies your attention, but ultimately doesn’t satisfy it. Just as watching endless documentaries on cable TV will make you wonder where the time went and why you didn’t go with it, this album of sampled, looping noise is easy on your ears but not on your brain. Small segments of melody or kernels of rhythm pass by, never quite jelling into a coherent piece of music or soundscape. The effect is nearly hypnotic, but then your leg cramps and you get up to stretch. After a walk to the kitchen and a small snack, you return and the track counter is on a different number and while the marching cadence of “Dust Cloud” is now the echoic cave of “Deafening Love,” or “Whole Hearted Mess” has fast forwarded to “Lovesick Teenagers,” the unfocused artiness of the record only leaves low-grade confusion in your mind. Sorry, I’m just not depressed enough to take this any longer.
Hometapes: http://www.home-tapes.com
