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I have to admit that part of the reason this
review exists is that the first word of the
band name also stands for the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid
Transit Authority – the trains in my
town that I take to work. If "MARTA Mist" were
a real thing, it would be a haze of vape and
weed smoke mixed with the acrid tang of stale
urine. Not really a nice image, to be sure. I
wonder what the name means to the band?
This record was released by Sound
In Silence, which is a label that does
small runs of CDs. Their work is consistently
good and you can find several reviews of Sound
In Silence releases on this site. The label
focuses on the post-rock and ambient side of
things, which includes a lot of what I listen
to.
So: name that draws my attention on a
consistently interesting label means I will
give the record a few listens.
Marta Mist is a duo from Bradford, UK
consisting of guitarist/bassist Gavin Miller
(also known as worriedaboutsatan)
and Sophie Green (who was in the band Her Name
Is Calla) on violin. In a way, this isn't a
real stretch from what worriedaboutsatan
are doing – layers of distorted guitar and
bass creating a general haze. However, Green's
violin is a pretty nice accompaniment to
Miller's guitaring. Also there is some good
drumming accompanying these songs, even though
no one is credited with drumming in the notes
I got with the promo.
There are six tracks in about 34 minutes. To
be honest, that is kind of normal for ambient
records, where song tend to be long. Of the
six tracks, three of them really stand out to
me.
On C'est Tout, Les Amis, which
essentially means "that's all folks" has some
lovely jazzy tapped drums. The guitar shines
and the bass rumbles, and over all of that the
violin soars. It's a very lovely tune.
The drumming is really great on Puzzle
with layers of strings and some fuzzed out
distorted guitar. It has a great toe-tapping
beat, and deep bass rumble. It's got a lot of
energy for a post-rock tune.
I also like the general flow on Patches.
The drums are great, scattered and fun. The
bass is deep, really moving as the violin sort
of flows in and out.
I am glad I gave this release a listen, and
glad that it does not remind me of the mist in
Atlanta's MARTA. Miller and Green are doing
quality post-rock here. They aren't
reinventing anything, but it comes across well
for those who like this sort of thing.
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