Medina/Walsh — Four Compositions
Obscure+Terrible/Cassette, Digital
New longform banger finds the Seattle duo getting deeper into noise and drone with fulfilling results. Each composition presents a different idea (“For Film,” “For Media,” “For Stage,” and “For Installation”) “For Film” is an uplifting drone piece that crescendos into an ecstatic burst of noise, a triumph of the imagined movie reaching its rightful conclusion. “For Media” is a dirtier, but even more bombastic piece that builds off “For Film,” right down to the music at the end sounds like the end of a filmstrip flapping after its run its course.
It is also the closest musical imitation to the album’s art. Like a scrambled cable channel from the early 90s, it’s a missive of static and white hot hum that echoes from the left to right brains as brief moments of clear sound pierce the otherwise discombobulating din.
“For Installation” is the most radical Medina & Walsh have gotten to this point in their recorded careers. The electronics begin to circumvent and overtake the organic instrumentation that is already obscured and confused throughout these pieces. It’s also the most patient track, not only in asking listeners to surrender 20 minutes to it, but also in its willingness to see how long Medina and Walsh can wait out their listeners before mixing it up and moving onto something different. Yet this challenge is one the duo is ready to meet. They are beginning to move away from their earlier recordings without abandoning their principles of sonic exploration and experimentation. As the cassette ends in a brittle decomposition, one is excited to hear what’s next.
