Whereas the Sea And Cake is technically nonetheless round, it’s been seven years for the reason that trio’s final LP. In his time away from the band, Sam Prekop has taken the Sea And Cake’s “all the things goes” penchant for testing the bounds of indie-rock purism and run with it, busying himself with numerous genre-fluid tasks. Most of Prekop’s seventh solo LP, Open Shut (Thrill Jockey), was composed for the stage as he ready for a sequence of reveals, some with pioneering multi-instrumentalist Laraaji.
Nowadays, Prekop is working totally on guitar and modular synth as he goes for a extra ephemeral, atmospheric extension of the Sea And Cake’s delicate melodicism and complicated, jazz-tinged rhythms. Open Shut has the texture of a reside efficiency—albeit one which’s impeccably sequenced and enhanced with unpredictable textural parts and exactly layered abstraction.
Right here’s Prekop’s tackle every monitor.
1) “Open Shut”
“This primary monitor is how I opened my units with Laraaji. The start two or so minutes, I consider as a sound collage overture to set the stage—to suggest the texture and tone of what’s to come back, whereas hopefully making a form of mysterious air for the remainder of the monitor to emerge from. The recorded model could be very near how I used to be performing it reside, however there’s a good quantity of improvisation right here. The problem for the report was how to decide on what could be the definitive take.”
2) “Font”
“With ‘Font,’ I used to be nonetheless working throughout the association from my reside present. For me, it has a ‘calm after the storm’ form of really feel. The droning pulse that’s most distinguished right here is actually the inspiration for the entire report. Certainly one of my favourite elements of the LP is the super-short, atonal, free-improv-ish burst of a solo that ends the monitor.”
3) “Para”
“I wrote a number of items for the report that weren’t a part of my reside present, of which ‘Para’ is the primary. It’s constructed round a easy chord development, however the place the voicing of the chords is at all times altering. There’s a delay that brings up a transparent call-and-response impact, which turned the central theme. The noisy percussion that is available in after the midway mark was a strategy to problem the continuity of the piece—an thought I really feel like I’m at all times returning to.”
4) “Gentle Shadow”
“That is additionally from my reside present, however I spent fairly a little bit of time augmenting the association, including a number of new voices and results that basically modified the general character. The type of piano vamp that runs all through the piece jogs my memory of John Coltrane’s ‘My Favourite Issues,’ a favourite since I used to be a child. I’m drawn to motifs like this which might be easy, the place that simplicity is a energy in a method that the repetition turns into hypnotic … however hopefully not boring!”
5) “A Guide”
“‘A Guide’ is a bit I like to consider as a type of travelogue, the place the start doesn’t give any hints as to the place it’s headed. The shape was found via engaged on it, the place one thought suggests the following thought and so forth. I had loads enjoyable understanding the drums on this one, of which I’m no professional. That’s possibly why it was such a cool problem to work via.”
6) “Opera”
“The final monitor on any report I’ve made at all times looks like a possibility to re-frame or focus the tenor of the entire report. The general really feel of this monitor is a bit darker, however I believe it’s efficient in highlighting among the brightest passages. I’m particularly pleased with the final synth solo, with its clangorous-but-woody timbre, which feels on the point of shedding management. However simply in time, it pulls itself collectively.”
