Where Echoes End - By The Pricking Of My Thumb

Year of Release: 1998
Label: Beaks Ahoy/self-released
Catalog Number: 001
Format: CD
Total Time: 71:58:00

Dark sounds from the not evident country of koalas, Crocodile Dundees, and other "neighbours" by the weird name of Where Echoes End. On their album By The Pricking Of My Thumb, they deliver a "sound" which leans more towards the experimental, dark area of new wave rather than the deep rooted progressive dungeon. In fact, it's the total approach that is so much different than what we have been used to and which makes this album so damned special. Based around the chaos of Eddy Katz and Paul Read, various rhythms and lots of samples find their way through a jungle of atmospheres in order to create something "special." Think with some imagination of a journey through the "bush" as if the "aboriginees" seem to reconcile prog rock with their didgeridoo in sampled attack! What fascinates me throughout this album are the very strong orchestrations as if a huge symphonic orchestra has been used. Mystical poetry supports this strange combination of progressive, ambient, classical and electronic music. Now and then some ethnic elements come gate crashing into the music as if it were ominous dark clouds disturbing the heavenly blue sky. Spoken segments even tell about psychoanalytical experiments of Freud with a heavily menstruating girl! As if the music isn't strange enough and they want to break all the rules of conventional music. German speeches are placed on top of Wim Mertens-like minimal piano whilst Harold Wilson's voice finds it's way on top of church organ. As the French would say: il faut le faire! Without any doubt a marvelous experience which can truly be called unique all the way!

Tracklisting:
To The Enlightened Man: Disengage ... disengage ... disengage (4.00) / Endless Forms Most Beautiful: Ripples On A Stagnant Pond (3:26) - Life As Animation (3:29) / The Face In The Mirror: Inventor Of The Invisible World (4:40) - Terra Incognita (3:54) - I Tell The Truth, Even When I Lie (2:38) - Opinions Divided (5:06) - A Cast Of Thousands (2:07) - Only In War (3:33) - Our Lowest Ebb I And II (8:51) - Our Lowest Ebb III And IV (7:19) - Syndication I (3:24) - Syndication II (4:05) / And Oh How We Long To Escape: Trust Me (2:44) - I'm Here But I'm Not All There (3:08) - A Stranger To Reason (3:01) - The Human Condition (1:52) - Ad Infinitum (2:01) / Wild Imaginings: Reengage ... reengage ... reengage (2:40)

Musicians:
Eddie Katz - keyboards, bass, sampling, sequencing, vocals, cymbals
Paul Read - keyboards, sequencing, sampling, vocals, guitars
Mark Rachelle - assistance

Discography:
By The Pricking Of My Thumb (1998)
My Sweet Grotesque (2001)
Pictures From The Attic (2004)
Hate Someone (2003)

Genre: Experimental

Origin AU

Added: February 1st 2000
Reviewer: John "Bobo" Bollenberg

Artist website: members.optusnet.com.au/~weend/frame.html
Hits: 4031
Language: english