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To the uninitiated, Lullaby can be a long, drawn-out drone symphony stretched ad infinitum, ad nauseam, requiring attention-span endurance, much like listening to a 24-plus-hour Mahler marathon or raptly watching the paint dry on the wall. On the other hand, however, this follow-up to 2002's Candice Recorder may be an all-natural sedative as potent as a strong dose of Ambien.
As an exercise in complete yet controlled abandonment, If Thousands is an ambient synth-saturated free-form sound sculpting resulting from an unlikely cooperation of the classically trained vocalist and guitarist Christian McShane and punk bassist Aaron Molina, based out of Duluth, Minnesota (also the home of the brave Low), whose hibernation-inducing arctic winters seem to spawn snorecore creations. By learning entirely new families of instruments outside their normal repertoire, McShane and Molina give way to endless possibilities to sound placement—twelve mics were employed during recording.
To give a complete picture of If Thousands, imagine a more narcoleptic Flying Saucer Attack and Windy & Carl getting their crash-course education in the conservatory halls, pretty knee-deep in Philip Glass-type incrementalism. That said, McShane hasn't really ditched his classical pedigree: the entire album is a whole musical entity broken up in suite-like sections—distorted sonata form, if you will. The D-note pedal point serves as a seamless running thread from the first track to the closing number.
For those who are willing to be sunk deep into the abyss of shredded samples, loops, and noises, If Thousands makes the journey into blissful nothingness all the more pleasant.
NANCY HUTAGALUNG
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