Lorelei Matthew Dingee guitar Stephen Gardner bass Davis White percussion Informed By The Future vinyl 250 TS-002 749846800213 2002 05 2003 06 Work Where Chemicals Fall 5 33 Monitor 4 40 Deliberate Speed Rupture 2 56 tonevendor Daniel www.tonevendor.com Lorelei's first release in eight years is "Informed By The Future". The recording process began in 1996 and has continued up until last year. The original tracks were retained with new layers added over time. While the additions have the benefit of reflecting the present the core of the tracks remains true to what was started the last time the band played together. The listener is the benefactor of Lorelei's determination to not allow these tracks to lay dormant. There are quite a few components of both the future and the past here. A careful listen will reveal the multi-vocal tracks in "Monitor" currently employed by Radiohead as well as the grinding guitar in "Work Where Chemicals Fall" reminiscent of Loop. The very attentive may even hear the ruminations of what was to become a track from Chessie, bassist Stephen Gardner's current project. Everyone Must Touch The Stove compact disc 2000 SLR044 B000001WYV 1994 03 1995 10 Today's Shrug Quiet Staid Debt Thigh for a Leg Throwaway Inside the Crimelab Day Newsprint Windmill Stop What You're Doing Pillar Revolver http://www.midheaven.com/revolverusa/links.html

Building on the work laid-down by their "Asleep" EP, Lorelei went back to the woodshed to self-record this remarkable full-length album. The songs got kinkier, the arrangements denser, the sound palette larger, the ambitions greater. "Everyone Must Touch The Stove" is a brave album, blending together a vast array of sounds into a bold statement of the possibilites of pop and rock, heading off in a hundred different directions at the same time, but still remaining a cohesive whole. In case you haven't guessed, we think this album rules!

The thing that strikes you about the songs on this record are the orchestrations - each track is carefully constructed from bits of noise guitar, dubby bass, thundering drums, strings, marimbas, maracas, timpani and other exotic instruments, bringing out the unique flavor of each song. The song structures are even more fragmented than before, challenging the listener to take a step back and take it all in. Even a straight-forward Wedding Present-style rocker like "Stop What You're Doing" or "Newsprint" has a twisted breakdown, a place for the players to stretch out. The overall effect is akin to an Elephant 6 band that grew up listening to Bailter Space rather than the Beach Boys - it's quite psychedelic without hewing to any 60's ideas of what that should mean.

And of course the playing is amazing. Davis' drumming is varied, and powerful while still being sensitive to the songs. Stephen's bass is an awesome amalgam of dub dynamics and melliluous melodic chording, underpinning Matt's free-flying guitars with a rock-solid bottom. We could go on all day about this record (and i guess we almost have!), but if you like experimental stuff and a listening challenge, then be sure to check it out. -- Michael Schulman

Asleep compact disc 1000 SLR B000001WYP 1993 12 1994 09 Mostly I Sleep The Sky Is Falling Caterwaul Stale Houses Slumberland Records Michael Schulman http://www.dropbeat.com/slrland/ slr@dropbeat.com Our undescribable post-rock heroes, who somehow blend Moonshake with early Cure and Smiths! Red vinyl copies still available. -- Michael Schulman