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Minotaur Shock, "Maritime"
Minotaur Shock’s second album (third if you count the compilation of previous EPs and related tracks) is an above average album that slips into self indulgence a little too often. Luckily the album is redeemed by having a strong smile inducing effect thanks to a lot of cheery and buoyant tracks.
4AD
The first couple of minutes of the opening track “Muesli” were not at all promising. The clarinet (which I didn’t like on any of three tracks it appears on) and percussion do nothing for me; the arrangement is far too fussy. Only in the last thirty seconds or so of the song does it gel together when the accordion kicks in. This problem of finicky arrangement thankfully doesn’t continue throughout the record. The tracks fall into one of two groups: the “really laid back and enjoyable” group and the “trying to be imaginative and innovative but failing miserably” group. An example from the first group being “Hilly,” which is good but slips too much into Aphex Twin patented blips, beeps and washes of synth. The second group is mercifully the smaller of the two with the aforementioned “Muesli” being the worst offender.
That being said there were many tracks that engaged me. “Vigo Bay”is a quirky, fun, and uplifting piece. It doesn’t rewrite the rules ofmusic but it bops along delightfully. The track that follows it, “SixFoolish Fishermen,” continues this feelgood vibe. The music soundsbouncy, like something that would be played in a cartoon about sailingaround exotic places having adventures with an animal sidekick(whatever animal that may be).
The biggest problem with Maritime that, when listening to the album in one go, many of the tracks don’t sound that distinct. In smaller doses the little idiosyncratic moments become more noticeable. Unfortunately they are normally hidden under the similar synths and beats that populate all the tracks on the album. As a mood enhancing album this works a charm, the January gloom is lightened considerably whenever I play Maritime.
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