Windy And Carl
Portal
(Ba Da Bing!)
This is one of those groups that I'd read about in small critical circles for quite some time before actually picking up one of their releases. The two piece band (comprised of Windy and Carl, no less) has been around since 1994, and this disc is actually a compilation of their first cassette, as well as a couple extra tracks.
The music on this disc is hard to easily classify into a genre of music unless you've heard something like it before. I'm not sure if it's because there are only two members of the band or because they play standard instruments (guitar, bass, keyboard, occassional percussion and vocal) that their music is so minimal. Most of the tracks on the disc are mainly just washes of sound comprised of the different instruments, with sparse twinklings of guitar or soft vocals over the mix. It's like more sedate moments of Spiritualized drone sessions without the freak-out noise spots. The actual percussion on the disc is very very rare, and so what one is left with is a sometimes ethereal, sometimes more harsh swirling mix of effervesent sound (which works nicely with the motion-themed song titles). If you're not big on droning guitars and something that doesn't have a beat, you should definitely stay away. If you're into the shoegazer thing, though, it does quite nicely. Over the course of 70 minutes, it will probably become monotonous for most listeners, but there are some very nice qualities to be found in it.
Rating: 6
