Transaction De Novo

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Bedhead’s final effort captures every tendon of its sound in precise detail, thanks in large part to the intense, hairline production techniques of engineer Steve Albini. Listening to “Exhume,” with its suspended guitar lines and single taps on a high-tone bell is like watching Bedhead’s music unfold from under a microscope. <i>Transaction De Novo</i> is missing the luxuriant instrumental exchange that made their previous albums so memorable, but its skeletal approach also contains some of the band’s best moments. “Half-Thought,” with its abrupt, quizzical guitar figures is an exemplar of Bedhead’s philosophy, while “Lepitoptera” (named for the order of organisms that includes butterflies, moths, and skippers) is one of the band’s sweetest constructions. The uproarious rock of “Extramundane” and “Psychosomantica” is evidence of a group wearied by its own trademark “slow-core” style. Thankfully, “The Present” chooses to close this overlooked ensemble’s career on a note of finality and optimism.

via Apple Music