If you believe the proverb, ‘the more the merrier’.
In the case of Set Fire To Flames, it doesn’t
necessarily ring true at first, but when the epic Telegraphs
/ Mouths starts taking shape, it becomes obvious
that none of the experimentation carried here would
have quite the same impact with a smaller, more structured
formation. With no less than thirteen members taking
turn in influencing this series of uncompromising assemblages
of sounds, excerpts of conversations and improvised
drones, Set Fire To Flames further impose the sonic
realm they first explored with Sings Reign Rebuilder
two years ago.
Formed in Montreal by members of Godspeed You Black
Emperor!, Fly Pan Am and other Montreal-based bands,
Set Fire To Flame released their first album in the
summer of 2001. Sings Reign Rebuilder was based
around a very simple concept: all thirteen musicians
locked themselves in an old flat situated just above
a mosque for an non-stop five-day recording session,
capturing everything from aimless guitar melodies to
cracking floorboards. The resulting twelve hours or
so recordings were compiled, dissected and re-assembled
to form the core of this first album, placing the collective
firmly on the post-rock map. Once again recorded in
self-imposed isolation, this time in a huge barn in
an old abandoned farm in Ontario, Telegraphs In
Negative / Mouths Trapped In Static is an impressive
record, expanding on the distinctive approach of the
collective. Haunting this double album from start to
finish, the creaking timber frame, clattering of chains
and various other environmental noises define this piece
of work as much as it shatters the boundaries between
music and sound. Working in a purposeful state of sleep
depravation, the members of Set Fire To Flames all contribute
to the atmospheric evolution of the record. From the
hypnotic melody of the opening Déjà,
Comme Des Trous De Vent, Comme Reproduit and the
momentary down-to-Earth excursions of Your Guts
Are Like Mine to the dark drones of In Prelight
Isolate and Tehran In Seizure / Telegraphs In Negatives,
the isolationism of Sleep Maps or the maddening
screams and screeches of Fukt Perkusive / Something
About Bad Drugs…, the ever-changing focus
of the recordings sculpt the atmospheric substance of
this album by juxtaposing elements usually well kept
apart. Favouring sporadic structures over linear constructions,
Set Fire To Flames constantly maintains the destabilising
ambience of their semi-improvised compositions, taking
their original concept a step further by weaving tighter
the non-musical elements into the purely melodic identity
of their work. Textures and atmosphere form the core
elements of the collective’s recordings, with
the rich and intricate musical components providing
this album with grandiose and luxuriant open spaces.
Telegraphs In Negative / Mouths Trapped In Static
often wanders far beyond the simple definition of music,
presenting a somewhat distorted impression of reality,
exposing more than before the ephemeral nature of their
compositions in the process.
4.4/5 |
