By Tim Kraus
If you are perusing the metaphorical bandcamp physical record store in the sky, Falcon Arrow’s most recent release provides yet more evidence that the band refuses to be put in a box, or at least that there is not yet a box that exists for them. The typical labels for such music (such as the ones that you will see in the tags at the bottom of this review) fall short of classifying their particular decoupage of sonic textures in a way that is meaningful or even factual.
You might hear the lack of sung voices and defer to the “instrumental-post rock” classification. “Look at how their eyes are glued to floor!” your internal record store clerk might say. Then, you notice such a prevalent and uncharacteristic use of major keys in their music, and then see that the gentleman with the bass guitar is feverishly stomping on effect pedals instead of, in fact, gazing at his shoes.
You may arrive at a Falcon Arrow show and notice the two lads setting up their gear and catch your inner Riftmagazine.com contributor saying “I thought drum and bass died in the 90’s and besides didn’t they use samples?” Well, besides being mostly correct (good one, inner contributor!) you will invariably begin to hear that bass guitar begin to produce pitches that you thought a bass guitar had no business making.
What you will find on this Falcon Arrow is a well-executed exploitation of both form and function. Matt and Dav use a complex combination of devices on the floor and in their ears to modulate, loop, replay and shift the sounds into an organic wort of pitches and speeds that listens like an audio transcription of several intersecting calculus equations, permutations of shapes, a mathematically composed chaos.
In Minneapolis, a city spoiled by notable two-piece rock, (see Gay Witch Abortion, Strange, Crash Cuddle, Wage Theft, more.is.more, etc.), Falcon Arrow is defining their unique swatch of audio-pantone. This record feels like the logical conclusion to a style that has been stress tested and tempered.
Your inner clerk may want to stop pacing about the store, and just mark a new box “Falcon Arrow”.
Tower can be streamed and purchased on Bandcamp.
Falcon Arrow can be followed on Facebook
Catch Falcon Arrow in Saint Paul on March 14 at the Bedlam Lowertown.
instrumental, post-rock, shoegaze, drum’n’bass, two-piece, Minneapolis, rock, falconarrow, looping, experimental,
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