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CD
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DIGI 058CD
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Since her 2005 release Sentimentalist (TYPE 007CD), Melissa Agate aka Sanso-Xtro has relocated to her native Australia and the move has treated her well. Fountain Fountain Joyous Mountain takes a lot of the ideas from her first record and dials them in, pushing everything to the next level. This collection of songs is a quiet force, blissfully confident and expertly assembled. Sanso's soundworld is a fully immersive environment. On the opener, "Fountain Fountain," we get a glimpse of everything to come. There's this carefully controlled chaos at work that is immediately hypnotizing. Agate sings simple passages toward the end, welcoming listeners into this new world as her voice floats above the fray. It becomes obvious as the album progresses that Agate is, at heart, a drummer. The staccato rhythms and percussive embellishments bring the album to life. These rapid-fire beats in conjunction with precise, half-speed instrumentation work in perfect harmony. Reminiscent of Blackdance-era Klaus Schulze at times, there's an intoxicating dizziness that is effortlessly present in "The Origin Of Birds" and "Wood Owl Wings A Rush Rush." Agate even throws a few nods to free jazz with "Goodnight Thylacine." Her skill as a drummer is matched by her ability as a songwriter, knowing when to push it over the top and when to hold back. Album closer "Exit: Joyous Mountain," sounds like a lost Alan Lomax gem with its melodica/harmonica duet and delicate singing. "Hello Night Crow" is the literal and figurative center of the album, though. It starts with a ringing synth loop that gives nothing away until the chord changes emerge a minute in. Again, it's about the slow-build, raising the tension and anticipation before melting into the sky. "You wouldn't recognize that it's not there anymore," Agate sings over the bubbling waves of synths. It is beautiful and crushing.
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LP
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DIGI 058LP
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Warehouse find, last copies on LP. 2005 was the last time anyone heard from Melissa Agate aka Sanso-Xtro on her record for Type, Sentimentalist. Since then, quite a bit has happened. Agate has relocated to her native Australia and the move has treated her well. Fountain Fountain Joyous Mountain takes a lot of the ideas from her first record and dials them in, pushing everything to the next level. This collection of songs is a quiet force, blissfully confident and expertly assembled. Sanso's soundworld is a fully immersive environment. On the opener, "Fountain Fountain," we get a glimpse of everything to come. There's this carefully controlled chaos at work that is immediately hypnotizing. Agate sings simple passages toward the end, welcoming listeners into this new world as her voice floats above the fray. It becomes obvious as the album progresses that Agate is, at heart, a drummer. The staccato rhythms and percussive embellishments bring the album to life. These rapid-fire beats in conjunction with precise, half-speed instrumentation work in perfect harmony. Reminiscent of Blackdance-era Klaus Schulze at times, there's an intoxicating dizzyness that is effortlessly present in "The Origin Of Birds" and "Wood Owl Wings A Rush Rush." Agate even throws a few nods to free jazz with "Goodnight Thylacine." Her skill as a drummer is matched by her ability as a songwriter, knowing when to push it over the top and when to hold back. Album closer "Exit: Joyous Mountain," sounds like a lost Alan Lomax gem with its melodica/harmonica duet and delicate singing. "Hello Night Crow" is the literal and figurative center of the album, though. It starts with a ringing synth loop that gives nothing away until the chord changes emerge a minute in. Again, it's about the slow-build, raising the tension and anticipation before melting into the sky. "You wouldn't recognize that it's not there anymore," Agate sings over the bubbling waves of synths. It is beautiful and crushing.
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CD
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TYPE 007CD
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Debut release on the super quality conscious Type label, and one of the most impressive digital sound assemblages heard in 2005 so far.
"Melissa Agate is no newcomer to the music scene, exposed very early in life as the drummer of Australian avant rock outfit Sindog Jellyroll. Since then she has refined her style and perfected what we believe and know to be a truly personal sound. Drawing influences from her antipodean background and also from a life-changing move to British shores, Sentimentalist is a deeply reflective and unashamedly visual album. Finding herself discontented with the trappings of the rock genre, it was not long before Agate discovered electronic music and began to experiment with as many different instruments as she could manage to acquire. From acoustic guitar and ukulele to traditional bells and kalimba, anything at hand was added to the rich soundscape of her creative vision. In doing this, Melissa has created something truly original. By purposefully taking sounds which inspired her and allowed her to visualize the rich memories she had stored in her mind, she has forged a work which is accessible but quite difficult to define in genre. Agate's influences are as far reaching as her musical ambition, and she takes well informed references from avant jazz, blues and experimental electronic works. Moments of Sentimentalist project hazy echoes of Robert Johnson, before colliding with the sublime analogue chic of Stereolab or Broadcast. Elsewhere, skeletal outlines of Opiate and perhaps Múm drift into angular rhythmical sounds explored recently by Supersilent and Radian. Yet rather than try and emulate another artist, instead Agate takes ideas to add to her ever changing musical ideal. It is her goal to produce an honest sound, something that is true to her soul, and she succeeds magnificently."
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