dirty monkey bugspray fun

low issued their sixth album recently and simply called it trust. the trio from duluth rock city continue their minimalist slow sound and continue to pare it down to the core, leaving their songs with a spare feel and sombre tone. nothing ever really moves fast, but you can hear that plenty is going on.

alan sparhawk and mimi parker trade vocal duties throughout and they even have their 2 year old daughter contibute on a song or two. the words and the music always sound as though they're either being whispered in your ear or being bellowed from far away and the amount of silence that soaks in between the instrumentation leaves a cozy impression. however, they aren't afraid to increase the volume and make the sound more harsh, which provides a bit of tension and an eerie dirge quality to the mix, unsettling any complacency.

starting with the solemn (that's how you sing) amazing grace, the fuzz kicks in and the stomping canada rumbles in, telling a tale of what gets left behind when you go to heaven (although duluth's on the way to thunder bay; maybe someone would swipe their stuff). from there, it moves to other slightly country, slightly folky, slightly ambient, slighty shoegazerish territory, with tales of tenderness, hopelessness and optimism. highlights include the shimmering time is the diamond, the resigned in the drugs and the peppy last snowstorm of the year.

the last three songs quietly close the book on the listening experience. la la la song is a balancing act between giving up and letting go easily. point of disgust is a gentle reminder that indicates about an argument that never ends and shots & ladders brings to mind spirits on a black winter, murmuring mockingly from the ether. tchad blake's production provides a brilliant texture throughout and brings both cohesiveness and individuality to each song.

a welcome respite from the duldrums and dumb repitition of a daily routine, trust is the aural equivalent of sitting quietly at a kitchen table with a cup of tea in the evening as the vapours float up through your spine and relax. trust is available through kranky (krank 052), where you can listen to a few mp3 samples.

(and if you ever see their christmas, get it. the best holiday album in ages. trust me.)