Mothlite - The Flax of Reverie

Rating

single starsingle starsingle star

RIYL

Sunn O)))
Panic DHH
Guapo

Tracklist

1. Riverside
2. The One In the Water
3. The Untouched Dew
4. Neverbegoodwood
5. Cauldron
6. Hypnogogue

Users Rating

single starsingle starsingle star
1 rating

Your Rating

Create an account or log in to rate this album

Recent Ratings

The Flax of Reverie is not the type of album that can be processed in one, two, or even three listens. While certain elements are detectable immediately, most of the album takes a fair amount of thinking and reflection in order to be truly digested and understood. The shift in tone, the heavy and intricate instrumentation, and the odd-yet-harmonious chants all create a certain atmosphere that sucks you in and commands your attention. One of the first things noticeable upon listening is just how intricate each of these six songs is. Mothlite manages to add layer upon layer of sound without making it come across muddled. The Flax of Reverie is a shining example of a baroque sound not being too overpowering or messy.

There’s no instance on the album where the instrumentation isn’t wonderful, but there are sundry occasions where tedium begins to bloom in some of the lengthier songs. It’s very easy to muse about just how much talent a release like this commands, but some of that appreciation can easily be lost during the lengthier songs of the album. These drawn out moments do contribute to the overall atmosphere, but they also tend to drag the pace nearly to a halt.

The tone of the album is mildly dark and haunting with the occasional shift to becoming lighter and more optimistic. Comparing any post-rock band to Sigur Ros is a cliché in itself, but during some of the more quiet moments on The Flax of Reverie, it’s difficult to not make that comparison. A comment of that nature is far from being offensive; it just seems to be losing its incantation more and more as bands are compared to one of the “gods” of post-rock.

Mothlite, while being a side-project for both Daniel O’ Sullivan of Sunn O))) and audio engineer Antti Uusumaki, seems as though it will be around for quite a while. The duo have already shown their interest in taking the project further, and it’s clear that they aren’t the type to be troubled with lack of inspiration. Hopefully on their next release they indulge a bit less and focus more on refinement and structure.

--Dant Rambo

Author

Dante
Last updated: 09/29/2009 09:01PM

Comments

Rick Gebhardt
11/25/2008
12:29PM
Age: 31
Location
Minnesota
I wanted to like this album so bad, and it does have its moments, but Dant got it right -- there are some long, boring sections to this album. It's definitely too meandering at times. Beyond that, pretty decent album.

Find me EVERYWHERE:

Dante
11/25/2008
01:40PM
Age: 22
Location
Fort Bragg, CA
I guess it's just hit or miss, depending on who you are. I read a few reviews for it yesterday and saw that they were praising the lengthier songs.
Little Birds
11/26/2008
01:13AM
Location
Bristol, UK
Damn. I've been wanting to use the band name 'mothlight' for ages. They're obviously Brakhage fans as well.