Dreams, The – “Morbido” – [kill shaman]

Thurston Hunger   5/9/2012   12-inch, A Library

French duo, Nafi and Armelle, creating collision music, where the
sounds bounce off each other. Definitely informed by a bastardized
dub, but the dub is not fed the crisp crack of snare but a cheapo
drum machine and discount wine. Synths are smeared all over, with a fair amount of pitch wheel dealing, giving some of the songs that trembling on the point of failure aspect that the mellotron was
renowned for. Actually the more I listen, the more different
synthetic sounds emerge. Nafi “Pure Reagge Night” has a kind of
Clash delivery, and their brand of reggae does indeed warrant the
misuse and mispelling. Occasional bouts of secret agent guitar
really help out and cut through the dense and dizzy mix, Armelle
sings more often and she can take it up to a shriek but is more
comfortable in that half-a-pack-of-cigarette baritone. Not as
forlorn as Nico, but in the neighborhood. I like it when they
hit the panic/pleasure button like on “Out of Eyes.” The start of
the album flirts with a middle eastern breeze a la Rainbow Arabia.
I’d like to hear ’em with a few more musicians and a little less
omnipresent sound…but definitely a solid album for anyone who
has to wipe the mascara off his/her keyboard. Le good stuff…

-Thurston Hunger