Courtesy – Slow Bruise
It’s no discredit to the taste-making Moon Glyph label to say that Courtesy’s top-drawer Slow Bruise tape is more than deserving of a wider scale release for Chi-town residents Drew Ryan and Kirk Rawlings sit their impressive palettes somewhere between the Embryonic psyche-pop of The Flaming Lips, the shadow-world sounds of Liars and the minimal kraut-punk of that recent bang-tidy Vision Fortune LP.
Slow Bruise is the duo’s second kaleidoscopic outing, its nine varied cuts incorporating atmospheric sub-bass wanderings, sirens, experimental sample chatter, gentle drone, plucked strings, a parp of lounge sax even lending “Total Drag” further depths of curiosity. Enigmatic vocals drift between near spoken-word and a Thom Yorke-style scuffed mew, while stumbling rhythms blend into bass hum, off-kilter crackle and melted chimes.
Amidst a number of contenders, the hypnotic “ComEd” stands out thanks to its rattling groove, sci-fi synth scan and a cohesive beat – the audio answer to Philip K. Dick’s timeless question “Do Androids Dream?” Yep, Slow Bruise is a real cool spool, as the kids used to say, worthy of the attention of many, but you get the impression it’ll happily settle for the adoration of a few.
Best track: “ComEd”
~Slow Bruise is out now on cassette on Moon Glyph.~