Boomkat (UK)

Having previously cropped up on the label as one of three acts on 12k’s Live In Melbourne album, Australian duo Solo Andata release their second album proper (a follow up to 2006’s Fyris Swan, on Hefty) with this absorbing set of compositions, all mixed by Taylor Deupree, with mastering duties undertaken by another 12k stalwart, Giuseppe Ielasi. From the first few moments of its sonically rich opener, “Ablation”, this is an ambient album that’s full of nuance and character. Surprisingly, there’s actually very little in the way of an electronic presence here, and most of the finer details come from organic sources, whether they be acoustic instruments (both traditional and homemade) or a range of location recordings, encompassing such subjects as the dark-drone chug of a boat’s engine to the close-up, environmental clatter of a forest. This is a wonderfully well-produced record (as you’d expect from the roster of talents involved), but it goes beyond the expected domain of textural and analytical microsound-type composition, expanding its focus to include Richard Skelton-esque untamed string passages and Chris Watson-influenced nature portraits. Wonderful stuff.