CD, Plastic Sound Supply, 2010
www.wentworthkersey.com
The final part in the trilogy from bootgaze’s finest. I’m betting you’re wondering just what I’m talking about… Well, imagine, if you can, country/bluegrass crossing over with lo-fi electronica, and you’re somewhere close to what bootgaze is. The trilogy has been an eye opening experience for me so far as, for one, I never expected something like this to come to my attention via Connexion Bizarre, and secondly, me liking anything even vaguely country never even crossed my mind.
“((O))” is really quite different to both “O” and “(O)”. It seems a lot more measured and calm, even though the trilogy as a whole hasn’t exactly been frantic by any means. It’s more Sigur Rós than 65daysofstatic, for an example!
“Broken Down Knees” starts everything off with soft guitars and flutes, and singing in French; definitely not something you would expect from usual bluegrass, and it’s a strange language to hear with a slight Southern American accent, but it is a beautiful mixture of sounds. “Oxbow” is the single from the EP and there is currently a video about on YouTube. It is certainly more bluegrass and the vocals do take precedence here, but the electronic accents are curious. In fact the electronics that are used this time round seem a lot more organic, like they have found their place. “A Door” again doesn’t rely on heavy electronics and works with Joe Kersey’s voice, which is no bad thing at all, as he has a beautiful voice. “Sunshine” is mostly instrumental, aside from about one verse, and this is where they’ve really let the electronic sound take the leading role as it were, but in a subtle way. “Sun and Moon” was the first taste I had of this EP, as it is available on the Plastic Sound Supply website as a free download – a little more rhythm here and basically it has all elements of Wentworth Kersey’s sound in one track. “Do You Need” is dark, lyrically speaking, with a fast melody and a slight Spanish sound. Something slightly unnerving about it. Luckily “Since You Arrived” brings us back to a much mellower feel, with what sounds like a slightly muted orchestra in the background. Finally, “Walking” is very stripped down, and they’ve certainly let vocals take the lead – just a guitar and someone singing can have as much of an effect as anything overly complicated.
Overall “((O))” isn’t as immediate as the previous release of “(O)”, which was one of my favourite releases last year, but it does have some high points in “Broken Down Knees”, “Sun and Moon” and “Walking”. I hope this isn’t the last we hear from them.
[8/10]
— Kate Turgoose