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Austere "Remittance"
A revision, a redo, a reimagining, a renewal, but still a fresh and new work.

"Remittance" by Austere is a release that immerses the listener in a new world of Austere's creation. Proudly noting that all of the sounds and instruments were played live by the band without the help of synths or sequencers, "Remittance" is a beautiful collection of music that captures both the wonder and mystery that Austere have become so well known for.

The disc opens with the track "Shokai", a pulsing track that blends a series of drones together into a latticework of sound. Beautiful and intricate, "Shokai" has a very dense and complete sound that easily draws you in.

"Shiv" starts out much more subtly, the sounds of fog and mist rolling across the land. From the title I expected a short sharp shock, but instead "Shiv" is a thick and dense drifting piece where tones rise and fall, and the sounds of sustained guitar and more play in the distance.

Track three, "Crimson", uses a repeated phrase overtop an evolving backdrop, a sense of almost oblique movement playing along. Voices and samples drift out of the darkness, a snatch here, a whisper there, something I recognize or maybe not...

"La Capella Reservado" follows with a very sparse opening, utilizing spaces and silence as effectively as the notes themselves. It's a testimony to the beauty of the notes in question, the slight variation in them that the track sustains one's interest so well and so long despite it's minimal variation.

"Prana" has more sounds, a lush, almost orchestral swell to it. It drifts and flows in lovely ways that wrap around my heart and make me feel warm and tingly. It's a beautiful thing.

"Bloombalm" has a certain jangly found sound nature to it, a jumble of tones and themes, a drone in the background and a repeated phrase, a rising and falling siren drone. Very interesting.

In contrast to it's name, "Morninglory" is a dark and hypnotic piece, sinister vocal lines twisted and drawn out into evil and menacing pieces of fear. A simple guitar line plays overtop, looped and repeated.

"Sunset" incorporates a sample from Kate Bush's Hounds of Love disc to great effect, a sense of new beginnings and new adventures ahead, played overtop a steady drone.

I don't want to spoil the surprise, but there's also a hidden track here, a simple piece where notes sustain and flow, perhaps the most beautiful thing on the disc. I'm not sure of the track's name, but in certain ways that makes it almost better for not knowing. And given Austere's enigmatic nature, I should think that that's more than appropriate.

Needless to say I've long enjoyed the work of Austere, and in that time I've come to know a fair bit of their work. Certainly "Remittance" is one of their best, a great introduction for new fans and a welcome reminder for those of us in the know just how wonderful they really are. You owe it to yourself to investigate this disc further.

rik - ping things