This album caught me completely by surprise. Portland's Lore City are an art rock duo, but their music is primal, precise, and immediate in a way that suggests No New York and early 4AD bands. The group's newest, Alchemical Task, is out next week and it's something I really enjoyed.
"Separateness" builds until it occupies a nearly ambient space, while "It's All Happening" is like an early Dead Can Dance number stretched out into something more expansive. Elsewhere, "Into Your Blue" recalls those tracks on the first This Mortal Coil album featuring Lisa Gerrard, even as the brief "Beacon of Light" seems like something from an old Daniel Lanois album mixed with Slowdive. Lore City really aren't just perfecting a sound that can be compared to other acts so easily, but those reference-points can give you an idea of where this goes.
Laura Mariposa Williams (vocals, keyboard) and Eric Angelo Bessel (percussion, keyboard, guitar) make up this two-piece, and while the material is sparse, it really appeals to an attentive listener with the patience to embrace it. There's an elegance here that's both chilling and refined, and I kept thinking of how this was pushing my mind into a space that was both dark and light at the same time. There's some similarity here to the Swans spin-off World of Skin, and even Diamanda Galas in a sense, but Lore City really deserve respect for their pursuit of a unique style of drone-rock here on these American shores.
Alchemical Task is out next week via the link below.
More details on the official website.