E Gone Advice to Hill Walkers
Reviewed by Joseph Murphy
E Gone (Daniel Westerlund of Swedish band, The Goner) released "Advice to Hill Walkers" on cassette in 2015 via Zeon Lights. Mixing electronic and traditional instrumentation, E Gone proved on this sophomore release that he well deserved a wider audience. So now, Sunrise Ocean Bender and Deep Water Acres have teamed up to make that happen; "Advice to Hill Walkers" was remixed, remastered, repackaged and expanded � and beautifully so in every way.
"Advice to Hill Walkers" sounds like an artifact, uncovered in some far-off and forgotten land, like a nomadic people lost in the skies. Instrumental, eclectic, and lush, E Gone�s music nods Eastward, upward, inward and just beyond the canny. Opening tracks find inspiration in Eastern musicians � and at least to my ear, Tuareg guitars � particularly in the wonderful �Follow Moonmilk Rivers.� Westerlund even adapts a Syrian traditional song, �Ya Bent Ehkimini,� in �You Don�t Know It yet but We are Losing You.� But �Build Your Camp Out of Alpine Moss� twists that same approach until its wrung to a few sci-fi whirs that give way to a brooding, horror film�s synth lead.
Closing tracks, �Continue Ascent while Blindfolded� and �Reach the Summit, Egg,� serve as final posts in the journey and recall the many paths to reach the pass. �Continue the Ascent while Blindfolded� blends glitchy electronics with a woozy, reverb-heavy progression, while �Reach the Summit, Egg� revisits drones, deep hand-percussion, and mesmerizing, looping string themes. At just under ten minutes, the song ends in a current of sounds that becomes a trickle, then finally silence. One can�t help feeling relief, in a way, the same relief one feels at the end of a long hike upward, where one hears the same wash of sound � and then silence. It�s a reward, and though recognizably difficult, you�ll do it again and again.
"Advice to Hill Walkers" is available on CD from Sunrise Ocean Bender�s website and Bandcamp.
If you�re not convinced, check out the video for �Record the Humming of Melodious Caves� linked below.
Highly recommended.
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