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Reviewed by erin mckeon
It begins without you even noticing. And by the time the sound has registered in your mind, you're off on a transcendental journey through layers of hard, driving beats, haunting melodies and an uncanny number of tracks named, simply, ">>". Recorded live on 12.9.99 at the famed Traxx in Charlottesville, and featuring DJ Who, Lake Trout's Alone at Last fully illustrates (for the first time in an official release) just how dynamic and exciting this band really is. If you like to get your groove on, this album is destined to become your favorite new release of the summer.
The album begins by easing you into the set with some subtle grooves and soft melodies for the first couple of tracks before vaulting you head over heels without warning straight into the world of Lake Trout - a world dominated by one of the most impressive drummers in the scene, Michael Lowry. Lowry's infectious and intricate jungle rhythms, first fully introduced on "Little Things in Different Places" are combined with elements of classic jazz (via flute and horns) and elements of classic "jam" band (via artful guitar and bass work) and then twisted inside out. The result is a sound that is categorically Lake Trout's.
One of my favorite tracks on the album, named, not surprisingly, ">>" (it's track number five) is an amazing spontaneous composition that brings together hard, fast jungle beats with downtempo basslines and minorized (read: haunting) melodies. Close your eyes, and you could swear you were throwing down with the best of them in one of New York City's darkest drum-n-bass clubs. Except this music is far superior to what you would find in one of those clubs… and just try to remember that there's a real person behind the drum kit!
Lake Trout certainly doesn't fit into any genre mold - they are simultaneously bringing together elements of jazz, rock, jungle, drum-n-bass and trance to create one of the most unique sounds out there. There's almost a foreign element as well - something that faintly reminds you of ancient Arabia, calling up images of caravans moving slowly over expanses of desert. And since the focus of their music is in the spontaneity of creating on the spot, they are a band that must be experienced live in order to ever really comprehend.
Think it could be good? Support the band, buy the CD.
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