Apologist - We're On Vapour Cougar [EM014]

01.Grand Mal
02.Crush Depth
03.Away

Playing time: 40 min.

 

London-based Apologist was born in North East Scotland in early 2003 and is the pseudonym of Philip Doak. Originally starting out as a Boards Of Canada / Scorn wannasoundalike, Apologist�s sound has, through a combination of composition and improvisation, evolved into one with far-reaching possibilities as demonstrated on new album �We�re On Vapour Cougar�.
Official website: www.myspace.com/apologistmusic

Independent review:

We�re On Vapour Cougar is the latest release from Glasgow, Scotland�s Apologist. Created in 2003 in North East Scotland, Apologist is the pseudonym of Philip Doak. Apologist seem to be inspired by many genres and musicians as can be heard by this release. The finished result is exceptionally good, enough with the talk let�s get to the music.

�Grand Mal� is a spacious and mystical track. It has sound that rotates, getting louder with each movement. A bass line brings in a steady beat. The song has an inspired and uplifting feel to it. There is something hopeful in all those sounds levitating and moving like a living thing. �Grand Mal� has a drone/post rock combination going for it that is a surprisingly good mix. In �Crush Depth�, we�re enmeshed with glistening, reverbed and sustained guitars that drone against ambient sounds. Bass is used once again to add weight to this light and ethereal setting. This track has a more haunting and reticent aura to it. Looped vocals add to the aura with a distorted and confused feeling. Nice ending with its use of somber wah effects. These effects directly lead us into �Away�. There is a meticulous use of tremolo guitar to interrupt our sedate atmosphere. An abstract guitar in the background, coupled with a dissonant piano melody give a transcendental tinge to the piece. In �Away�, Apologist is able to blend the auras of the first two songs into something that gives us a quiet calm and elation at the same time.

Dreamy, provoking and perceptive, �We�re On Vapour Cougar� has an aura of peaceful spirituality to it. It seems to be a devotional to the effects, instruments and sounds created and their ability to inspire us. To just drop this under the heading of drone or ambient is a disservice both to Apologist as a musical project and their output. Think of it as music for the soul. This is a great cd to totally disconnect from the outside world. All that�s needed is to strap some headphones on and just let your mind go. (by Viktorya / HeathenHarvest)