Over the years, one of the bands that i keep coming back to is Auburn Lull. They are not the most prolific band in the world, which sometimes makes it a little difficult to be a big fan of their music. Auburn Lull have been silent since 2008, and here, suddenly, comes a free download EP from one of the band members.
RxGibbs is the solo project of Ron Gibbs, who plays bass and guitar in Auburn Lull. However, the rest of the band also assist on the record, or at least they are credited on the MySpace page set up for this. So who knows – maybe this is just Auburn Lull going in a new direction.
Not a radically different new direction, mind you. It is not as if the music on the Disclosure EP were earnest singer-songwriter pap, which would be about as different from Auburn Lull as one could get. No, this music is that some kind of dense, multi-layered, lush songcrafting that defines Auburn Lull, only RxGibbs is slightly more electronic sounding. The beats sound processed, and the songs more dub than ambient. A subtle shift, surely, but one not unwelcomed here at Sponge central.
The Disclosure EP consists of three songs and one remix. Let’s go over each.
High Moon kicks things off with a deep bass riff and some chugging drumming. Layers of guitar meander over everything, droning and chiming in a manner that attentive listeners will remember from the various Auburn Lull releases. The percussion here is more tribal than it ever was with Auburn Lull, and it makes a nice contrast. Eventually some female vocals come in, just wordless singing, a droning voice to accompany the layers of guitar.
Third Kind is more of an Auburn Lull song. A tick-tocking beat forms the background, and over this deep drumming is scattered while guitars cascade in echoing layers that is very typical of the Auburn Lull sound.
Jumproom to Mars is the real stunner on the EP, which is not to say that the previous tracks were boring. This starts with a long drone that builds slowly, with layers and layers of guitar joining in, until a methodically clicking Seefeel-esque beat comes in, sampled drums clicking and clacking alongside the drone. Eventually a bass riff comes in to form the melody, a deep thumping beat straight out of Orb-like dub. The song head-bops along for almost seven minutes, again with more of that wordless female voice. Very lovely.
Finally, we have the coppice halifax powdered construct cmx mix of Jumproom to Mars, here remixed by some known as Milieu. The remixer stretches out the song to 22 minutes, making it even more Orb-like in its slowly growing dub.
Overall, i am pleased. Adding the slightly electronic elements and tribal percussion to the guitar miasma that Auburn Lull do is a good idea. And the best part is, the band is giving this EP away for free. Point your browser at http://www.myspace.com/rxgibbs and download away. Well worth the five minutes it will take you to get the EP.
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