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CD ReviewNick Grey – “Les Eaux Territoriales”By Marcus PanNick Grey's work has always fascinated me, being both minimal but complicated somehow. Taking simple sounds and twisting them into interesting tones and rhythms. Les Eaux Territoriales is just as bizarre as Nick's previous Regal Daylight(1) release and continues in the fashion he's carved for himself. The CD itself comes in a brilliantly hand crafted construction fold out, with a lovingly hand penned circular fold out displaying track and CD info. It opens with subtle tinkering harps and deep seated vocal samples, whispered in the background. By track 2 it has grown into a stronger moving track with a heavy rhythm kept in check with guitar accompaniament that anchors it to the center of the music. Subtle changes of backing rhythms will either annoy some or perk the interest of others as it warps the track a little at a time, but not so much that it's noticable right away – the minimalism of the track itself touched with lightly complicated rhythm changes. The main problem with the second track is its length. Nick's vocals come in rather late and by this time you're getting a little tired of the stoic and slow-moving track. It's quite a long track. Track 3 picks up with bubbly samples that spill into ambient style chords. Subtle vocal utterings join, but don't fall in step with the rhythmless chord strains giving the track a very strange feel and otherworldly effect. It also suffers from the lengthiness, but the closing whispers really up the bar of strange. Nick Grey is an enigma in the music industry and he's always put out the most bizarre albums and conceptual visions. As a result his work will either piss you off or become a staple in your late-night sessions of estrangement. It can at once push your mind to the limits of sanity, and while the track lengths deter from the overall appreciation at least for myself, it could be this length that allows you to reach meditative places you wouldn't had they been shorter. Grey is certainly not easily pigeonholed and I can barely find a way to compare him to other artists – but if you're looking for a truly surreal trip to "somewhere else," then Les Eaux Territoriales can certainly take you there. Contact Information: (1) Reviewed in Legends #146. |
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