Rating: 
Occasionally you miss a release of a deserving band, and you spend your time thinking it over, wondering how it escaped you. Luckily, Silent Land Time Machine‘s & Hope Still is here to help you with your troubles. It’s not begging to be accepted by you, it simply carries on patiently, awaiting your listening experience.
Unlike most who create musical landscape music, the remarkable thing is that this project was created by one individual. Â There is not a slew of musicians willing to provide input, this is simply a wonderful creation by an individual. Â That being said, it also might be the one possible detractor, as occasionally the songs drag on a little bit, repeating patterns.
It’s hard to describe the exact sound of this record, as one would find it difficult to decipher every instrument being used and at which point. Â Then throw in some vocal samples bubbling underneath the structure of various songs, and you would be hard pressed to label this band as anything. Â One might be able to draw comparisons to M83‘s Before the Dawn Heals Us, but take that allusion, and leave it out in the woods to grow for several years. Â That is as close as one can proximate a definition for this band.
Seeing as it dwells in the creation of a soundscape, here is what one might picture as they listen to the album: You jumped in your car, as the day was sunny and clear, intent upon escaping the city, if only for a few hours. Â As you drive, the music kicks in, and your thoughts cease to remain relevant. Â The music is carrying you along, through densely wooded hills, across grasslands blowing in the breeze. Â Suddenly, the mood strikes you to pull over near a struggling stream. Â You watch atop an ancient bridge as the water trickles into nothingness. Â Seconds, minutes, hours all pass you by, but the only thing you feel, or hear, is the music on this album. Â You’ve drifted away, but as the album ends, it’s time to return.
You see, there is something about this album that provides an overwhelming warmth emotionally. Â It evokes something that very few albums are able to do, as it asks for nothing but your listening participation. Â Through its peaks and into its valleys, if you follow closely, you will be rewarded ultimately, as nothing soothes like the gentle sounds from & Hope Still.
Don’t forget that Silent Land Time Machine will be playing at Emos on January 23rd.
[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/01-everything-goes-to-shit.mp3]
Download: Silent Land Time Machine – Everything Goes To Shit [MP3]
New residents of our little town and recent Woxy performers, The Heartless Bastards, have a new album coming out in February and are sharing new single “The Mountain” from the album. The new LP, The Mountain, is set to be released via Fat Possum Records on Feb. 3rd. We also just heard from Do512 that the band is headlining the Bush retirement party on the 20th at Antone’s next week. Tickets are available for that event over on the Act Blue website for $20. The band was also recently confirmed for the SXSW festival in March.
