On Cloud Plate (Cryptogramophone), drummer Alex Cline plays Zen-like percussionist, making the most dramatic use of silence while summoning up a variety of otherworldly sounds with his experimental ensemble. Along with haunting electronically effected vocals by Kaoru, electric koto by Miya Masaoka and guitar swells by G.E. Stinson, Cline concocts an eerie soundscape that is full of tension and surprise-part horror film, part Kabuki theater. Normal drumming standards of time, swing, groove and technique simply don’t apply here. This is strictly about atmospherics and textures: closer in spirit to Brian Eno’s ambient music projects than to anything that might remotely be identified as jazz, but with a darker, creepier bent. The perfect soundtrack for your next haunted-house party.
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