Long has Brad Rose maintained Digitalis, a beacon of experimental music nestled in the heartland of America. Spreading across the landscape like an epidemic, Rose—along with his wife, Eden—has delivered stack upon stack of gratifying discoveries both influential and enjoyable. But recently the pioneering duo has upped their own musical game, flooding an eager market with a steady stream of fantastic releases. Mechanical Gardens, however, stretches Eden and Brad’s Alter Eagle outfit to the brink of the mainstream.
Borrowing from the simplified electronic formula that dominated the late '80s and early '90s, Mechanical Gardens proves the remedy for its maligned genre much as the recent rash of synth-heavy acts recovered the sinewy instrument from its new wave and B-movie imprisonment. Mixing stripped komische rhythms with a healthy dose of subdued sexuality, Brad Rose and Eden Hemming fulfill the promise offered from Mechanical Gardens’ innocent title. As the album unfurls, its buds begin to bloom until its fragrant sensuality turns its admirers into smitten kittens.
The first step is the most precarious, as "Battlegrounds" hums with a sheen not far removed from the likes of U2’s "Numb," but beware settling on such antiquated ideas, for they will only wilt Mechanical Gardens’ blend of machinery and organic chemistry. "Honey" momentarily shifts the paradigm with a catchier aesthetic. Eden and Brad trade off vocal duties, recreating the kitsch of '80s dance pop while surrounding themselves with paired down dancehall beats and a heavy melody to mask the catchiness of "Honey."
If there is a misstep to document, it’s the ill-timing of "Monsters." Its placement as the A-side finale kills the low key cool of Mechanical Gardens’s first half. This repetitive tribute to the life and work of Ian Curtis does the album little favors other than ushering in the changing mood as continued by B-side beginner, "Spy Movie." This song transforms the meditative first half mood into a militaristic march toward doom. Eden and Brad bark in unison, doling out lyrics as drill instructions as the breezy melodies of Mechanical Gardens’ first half dissolve into a panicked pace.
Despite its inclinations to stick close to a nearly forgotten formula, Mechanical Gardens finds itself in a class to itself. The innocence and cool exuded by Brad and Eden carries itself into Altar Eagle’s first proper album, resulting in an album that may be knocking on the door of mainstream electronic music but never abandons the roots of Brad or Eden.
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