OUNDS

Here comes the album of instrumental music which can easily disorient and mislead even the most practiced and informed connoisseur. I mean the long-awaited third album of TRIP LAVA, a modern classic "one-man-bad" directed by composer and multi-instrumentalist Joel Lee from the Twin Cities Metropolitan area. Is it Rock or Electronic? Is it Prog or Psyche? Well, since 2005 this project has been creating instrumental music beyond the traditional genre-style classification.

Joel Lee uses guitars, keyboards, synths, acoustic drum-kit, drum-machine, voice, and variety of electronic devices to create somewhat very special. His music flows and changes stylistic profiles constantly, even within one single track. Any attempt to classify it would be strictly subjective and determined by personal experiences of anyone who dares to do it... Nevertheless, the tacks on "Ounds" (understand "Sounds") are technically separated from each other. And it makes the task of classifying a bit easier. You can say at least that there are tracks rhythmically structured by acoustic drum patterns (like "Ounds, Pt. 1", "Ouseh Of Orsmirr", "Osmicc Oldeng Ordsw Of Onmeldag", and "Ounds, Pt. 2"), and they can be conditionally defined as bizarre and freakish Space-Rock or even Avant-Prog. As well as there are tracks not organized rhythmically or with loose sequenced/programmed rhythmic arrangements (like "Oblivision", "Orf Ontrastc", "Ongadays", "Oopl De Oopl", and "Oomsmushr") which relates to abstract Ambient-Drone, Illbient, or even Futuro-Techno. If/when you try to perceive the album in its contextual eternity, you would get quite weird and intricate Sound-Collage featuring a sort of electro-acoustic pictures/scenes rather than songs/compositions.

In my subjective assessment, this is the most principle characteristic of TRIP LAVA music. Joel Lee creates so called "Hybrid Music Sound-Collage" which can take any stylistic shape depending only on what the author wants to say/illustrate and on what audience he wants to appeal to. In fact, "Ounds" much reminds me a soundtrack to an adult animated film based on sci-fi comics or video-games. And I can guess that the album, aside from a funny anagram puzzle within the track-list, should have kinda funny cripping fabula-plot. Am I right? Anyway, it's definitely not for every Prog-Rock fan or rock-traditionalist, but it's strongly recommended to lovers of weirdly progressive, genreless, hybrid, collage, inventively experimental and loosely cinematic instrumental music.