What's so wonderful about Ron Morelli's L.I.E.S. record label is its strong emphasis on variations on a theme. That theme may be "homemade electronics" and the variations careen from house to industrial to techno to ambient to drone. The label's new Jahilyya Fields album, Unicursal Hexagram, does all of that within one record. That's not to say that it's unnecessarily loose, but that it's uniquely fluid and thus heavily fresh. "White Cabbage" starts with a thick pulse, some murky keys slowly declaring themselves. Everything unfurls at a steady pace, tension occasionally building and releasing, lasers occasionally being shot off, until we're moving rapidly and a little nervously. Right around 4:20, there's an inexplicable sound of a blowout that never returns. It's easy to miss, head stuck in the song's warm sand, but it's a startling and exciting moment. The rest of the record properly weaves its way from Eno to Black Dice. "Air on Earth" is especially beautiful, alternately meditative and menacing; "Ocean Mom" sounds like digital frogs croaking; "Water Breaker" is just a heavy jam—this song could be by Hawkwind. Pick up Unicursal Hexagram when it's out Monday, heartily recommended.
Stream: Jahilyya Fields, "White Cabbage"
