NIEDERRAD 16

Intriguing ‘micro prog’ LP from Bruce Soord’s old partner-in-crime.

Back in the 90s, Bruce Soord revered his pal Neil Randall as something of a creative driving force. The two friends played in Vulgar Unicorn together, while Randall also cut tracks for another progressive band, Putain Media. Eventually they drifted apart, with Soord starting The Pineapple Thief while Randall moved away from music. Fast-forward a few years, while working for Nintendo in Germany, Randall met singer Julia Maul and began reworking some of the old Putain Media material and writing new tracks; the results are here. Randall’s journey sounds pretty computer-heavy, and that’s reflected in this electronic, often quirky release. But there’s melodious warmth, too (Pittencrieff Park), woven into clever layers of triphop, ambient and modern prog. Maul sounds rather like a less weird Sia, which enforces the pleasingly Zero 7-esque qualities that crop up in the likes of Long-Wave Long Story and Soft Museum. [Brainjacked] embraces more all-out jerky, experimental electronica, while Soord makes an appearance in the jazzy Metro Transit Authority (Rulebreaker Arr.), a commanding mix of fusiony guitar heroism and slightly trance-like beats.