DWELLER ON THE THRESHOLD 'Vol II' album premiere
FFO: Roy, Two Gallants, Laika’s Orbit, Shahman, Waxwing, Queens Of The Stone Age, Worst Gift, Frank Black, Johnny Cash and Bloodpheasant.
People are generally surprised when I inform them that, yes,
I do listen to music that isn’t heavy. I mean, c’mon, Nada Surf is my favourite
band! Kehan from Don’t Live Like Me Records gave me this incredible opportunity
to this, so I’m very excited to be premiering the new, dark and epic post-rock/folk-rock DWELLER ON THE THRESHOLD
‘Vol. II’ full length.
This is a supergroup, plain and simple. The members have
been and still play in some extremely seminal bands, including; Ampere, Wolves, Daniel Striped Tiger, Death
To Tyrants, Kindling, Parquet Courts, and so many others. DWELLER ON THE
THRESHOLD was established by Northeast punk dignitaries and longtime friends
Eric Gagne (Footings, Redwing Blackbird, Death To Tyrants), Randy Patrick (The
Toll, Death To Tyrants), Andrew Skelly (Kindling, Ampere, Wolves), Jason
St.Claire (Sweet John Bloom, Daniel Striped Tiger), and Sean Yeaton (Parquet
Courts, Daniel Striped Tiger) have been making records together in their spare
time since 2010. Separated by thousands of miles and other full-time projects,
DWELLER ON THE THRESHOLD has always provided its core group with a creative and
fulfilling way of staying in touch. ‘Vol. II’ is a departure from their first
release in so much as subsequent albums will be a departure from it. There are
mellow moments and there are earsplitting moments, so that much hasn’t changed
at all.
Here is Kehan’s story about how he came about releasing this
bad boy:
“Back in 2012, I attended Now Denial's 10 year gig in
Allston, MA which would be one of Daniel Striped Tiger's final shows for the
foreseeable future. This was also shortly after DWELLER ON THE THRESHOLD's
debut was released by Enemies List (Have A Nice Life, Planning for Burial,
Xasthur, etc) and they happened to be selling copies. Over a few years of
repeated listens, it gradually became one of my favorite releases ever. Volume
I conjures moments ranging from massive waves of sound to soft acoustic guitar
pillowing an echo chamber. Come to find out they needed a label to help release
Volume II, I offered to help and here we are! Conceptually like a Western
Massachusetts Pygmy Lush, if you will. I'm beyond stoked to share with you this
wonderful record, made by some of the kindest musicians I've met to date."
Here’s Dave’s quick overview of the record:
Opener “Barnfire” puts the folksy acoustic guitars on
display right from the get-go. This 8+ minute song begins very tranquil and
doesn’t really get into it until just after the one-minute mark, injecting
slightly twangy and somber clean vocals that float throughout the track’s
tenure.
Next up is “Totem” which is a much shorter investment, with
the dark and depressing rural rock clocking in at 2:52 that must, just fucking
must, have some Johnny Cash influence.
“Decimal Spaces” is a whopping 13:26 in length and is easily
one of the best tracks on ‘Vol. II’.
The first few sections are spacious and ambient with nods to minimal
atmospheric rock. By seven minutes, however, the song slides into some very
jammy and interesting territory that drops any ties to folk/country and instead
delves into proggy, epic rock and post-rock. By the 9-minute mark shit gets
pretty intense and probably as heavy as you’ll hear on the entire record.
“Cold Clear” is a basic acoustic track with sporadic and
nearly whispered vocals that is calming and gorgeous for the first three
minutes before some awkward and experimental instrumentals take over for the
final three minutes.
Track number five is “Onto You”, a sludgy,
post-rock/post-hardcore romp that easily could have been released in the
mid-late 1990s to much acclaim. A different beast than most songs on here, this
is a very engaging song that grunge music and Brian Cook’s baby aka the band
Roy could easily be compared to.
“Gunslinger” is another killer song and probably the most
straightforward banger on this record. After the two minute mark we are even
graced with some pretty fucking powerful solos followed by a quieter outro.
“Homeless” is over quickly, being only 2:44 in length. Like
a lone light in a cavern, the song juxtaposes the sad with the hopeful in a
stirring track that has some very effective vocals and powerful guitars.
The closer “Ollie Ox & Free” is a very chill song and
would be great to sip an iced tea to on the porch of my non-existent farm. It's a very relaxing and intriguing listen that perfectly closes the album.
Don’t Live Like Me Records is releasing the 12” on three
different variants out of 300 and the entire thing was recorded by Will
Killingsworth and mastered by Alan Douches.
Listen and buy the full album here:
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