Bells Break Their Towers Album

Bright
have studiously erected majestic pillars of sound since their inception
in Boston, MA in 1994. Gaining notoriety and a dedicated following for
their trance-inducing, cascading minimalist rock, Bright have amassed
a brain-flogging discography of four albums and an ep to date (on Ba
Da Bing! and Darla Records). It has been a while since their
last opus, 2000's Full Negative (or) Breaks, as the band
went on hiatus, with guitarist/vocalist Mark Dwinell's remarkable
solo Nonloc
project as the only platter offered in the interim. Now relocated to Brooklyn,
the duo of Dwinell and multi-instrumentalist Joe Labrecque have
recharged their energies, entering the studio early in 2005 to conceive
their fifth full length. Rapture and reverence shall be bestowed unto
all fans of minimalist, melodic ambient rock, for leading lights Bright
are back with Bells Break Their Towers, their most sonically
taut and elaborately adorned recording yet.
Early on, Bright tread predominantly in ecstatic instrumental rock
forms. Colliding harmony and dissonance, their music clung precariously
to a raw, edgy core, even as blossoming sound forms methodically unfurled
outwards, like flowering vines towards the sun. By the time of Full
Negative (or) Breaks, vocals became part of the mix, but largely
used as more décor for their vibrant sound pools. What makes the jaw drop
with a thud to the floor, however, is the realization that Bright's
finely-honed music is composed entirely on the spot. Entering the studio,
Bright let it fly, and with a few overdubbs of added instrumentation,
the result is head-bobbing and mind-elevating all at once. Drone and ambient
textures, motorik Kraut rhythms and repetitious grooves collide with a
tremendously melodic, almost pop sensibility, lending Bright a
unique sound. Bells Break Their Towers expands their textural
palette further, as evidenced on the acoustic hypnosis of "Flood ", and
with the Terry Riley-like
ambient propulsions of "Secret Form of Time ", which turns keyboard lines
into cartwheels while overtones exhale into space. Bright make
it seem so effortless…their sonorous whirlpools erupt from improvisation
but never sound overtly "jammy", while their attention to melody, form
and instrumental layering buffs to a shine the circular breathing of their
rhythms. This is improvised rock you can hum to while you drift into trance
states.
German minimalist rock as forged by Neu! melds with 70's ambient
and modern underground independent rock, sculpting fresh new trajectories
in sound. Impeccably recorded, Bells Break Their Towers
is a triumphant return for Bright, one of psych rock's most underrated
sound spinners.-Strange Attractors