Throne

Performer: Excepter
Producer: Terry Fell
Distributor: Caroline Distribution

Notes: Excepter: John Fell Ryan, Nathan Corbin (synthesizer); Caitlin Cook, Calder Martin, Dan Hougland. Personnel: Calder Martin (vocals, guitar); John Fell Ryan (vocals, kalimba); Caitlin Cook (vocals); Jim Robinson (synthesizer); Dan Hougland (box, sampler). Recording information: 382 Jeff Street, New York, NY (10/24/2002/05/14/2004); Live To Stereo. New York City, NY (10/24/2002/05/14/2004). Editor: Terry Fell. Photographer: Suzanne Ackerman. This 2005 Excepter outing features four tracks by the Brooklyn-based noise ensemble. Far from easy listening, THRONE is book-ended by two drifting shorter pieces--"Jrone (Three)" and "(The Ass)"--with the unsettling nearly 15-minute "Jrone (Two)" and "The Heart Beat," a disarmingly ominous piece, providing the bulk of the largely instrumental album. When the press materials compare the band to "a group-groped Helen Keller too drugged out to protest," you know it's going to be hard to assign a rating to the album. Also when the liner notes consist of nothing but a citation to a Bible verse (Daniel 7:9 -- "I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head was like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire"). And also when the album consists almost entirely of the droning sounds of damaged synthesizers, tortured samples, and twisted guitars, occasionally punctuated by unexpected thrusts of rudimentary rhythm. The album's most interesting track is the first, "Jrone (Three)," which features the eerie vocals of Caitlin Cook as well as floating fragments of chimes, bells, guitar feedback, and one-note bass. This is the kind of music that really resists analysis or critique -- either you respond to it on a visceral level, in a way that has nothing to do with craft or form, or you give it about one minute of your time before moving quickly and nervously on to something else. And yes, it's on the Load label -- how did you guess? ~ Rick Anderson

Uncut (p.90) - 3 stars out of 5 - "Attaining a dazed, shamanic ambience somewhere between the communal congregation of Amon Duul and HEATHEN EARTH-era Throbbing Gristle..." Magnet (pp.92-96) - "This Brooklyn quintet tweaks an endless pool of undulating textures using sampler boxes, guitars, synths, echo and thumb piano....THRONE maintains the smoothest chill even when the percussion picks up..." The Wire (p.57) - "Live, Excepter are less a group than an environment, filling the air with electronic emanations and covering the floor with crawling vocalists." Mojo (Publisher) (p.103) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Excepter seduce with twilight tones and goose-bump shudders."

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