Råd Kjetil and the Loving Eye of God
Mattmar
Goddamn I'm a Countryman Records
Need a heaping slab of proggy, psychedelic drone for your next imaginary mental excursion? Råd Kjetil and the Loving Eye of God are here to help. Once you relax and just go with the drone (in six fairly lengthy tracks), you find there's quite a few compelling sonic flourishes to enjoy. There's a long, foreboding intro, a looped toddler's voice that adds a mesmerizing element to one track, strange sound effects and dark, textured ambient layers that are way more than just background. You can hear real musicians at work here, making active decisions about the ebb and flow. If I'd had this album back in college, I can imagine there would've been lots of interest from fellow dormies in the deeply chilled psych-out pouring outta my room. And how can you not love a songtitle like "Dry air static sparks northern skies"?
- Kevin Renick