Labels: red tide
Review by: Kunal Nandi
Usually found bellowing for unhinged London doom-metal monkeys Among The Missing, Tim Holehouse wrongfoots you on his solo ventures by revealing a far more sensitive side to his musical being. On this marvellous split EP, he confounds expectations yet again by returning to his Host Sepia roots, an alter-ego that wasn’t averse to a bit of experimental sound-scapery when the mood hit him. The bare ingredients seem dry (a little tape hiss, sparse chords, found sounds) but the effect is quite engulfing. Opener “[.]” features a mere two chords, but my God, what a pair he’s chosen! There’s something highly suggestive of the melancholic here despite the apparent lack of tangible music on display. Quite amazing.
Radio Mast consists of Pete from the conspiracy-obsessed heavy-ass Pixies-esque power-trio combo The Illuminati 3, and it sounds completely different, not just from TI3, but from most things. Ostensibly producing similar head-spinning work to Tim’s output, the real coup comes when Radio Mast starts covering classic standards like “Dream A Little Dream Of Me”. The total familiarity of the song is perverted by the method by which it is interpreted to create something wholly new and alien. A beautiful piece of work, and a lovely DIY release too.