Creating some of the most hauntingly beautiful music seems to comeeasily to the members of the gy!be nuclear family, but on this EP thesparse ensemble creates some of the most honest and unorganized musicof their careers. What started out as Efrim's studio noodling soonbroke out into more collaborative sessions, and eventually the songswere becoming something so special that they deserved and beckoned tobe finished. It's somewhat of a mixed bag in terms of pacing andsubject matter, and the songs come off as a bit of a sampler platter ofthe different bands that these members play in. The more the CDprogresses, however, the more I got the feeling that this music isgetting further and further away from the pure drama and epic dynamicsof the mothership group and more into the territory of smallercharacter pieces. The politics are still present, notably in the firstmoments of the EP where echoing shouts of "More Action! Less Tears!"are heard and on the second track "Microphones in the Trees," aparanoid study of the relentless monitoring of a nation's citizens.Through it all, Efrim is becoming a more capable and stronger vocalist,and the four voice choir adds real gusto to these fairly simple songs.As usual, my pulse quickened any time there was a swell in the song,where the instruments rose in volume or the playing became morefervent, but even during the quieter, subtler moments I was stillentranced. The raw energy of "More Action! Less Tears!" is certainlywelcome, especially considering the quiet nature of most Silver Mt.releases, and even though there is an incredibly sloppy rhythm thatnever maintains a consistent timing, it's still a hair-raising affair.Then the band descends into nigh-Cerberus Shoal territory on theaforementioned "Trees," with odd vocal prowess and gentle piano andguitar. The strangest and most captivating track is the last, whereEfrim goes it alone with toybox and guitar, letting whatever strikeshis fancy escape his lips. The track represents his most assuredlyrical and vocal performance ever, and the beauty of the whole releasewill capture me again and again whenever I listen to it.samples:
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