NEW LANDS

This is one of the most progressive albums on this site. Most advances in music since 1980 have been technological rather than stylistic, in my opinion, the growth of guitar effects being one of the most important technological developments. Flying Saucer Attack uses the guitar and it's various sonic accessories to create entire soundscapes, not like Robert Fripp, but by constructing shorter songs in which almost all of the sounds are made by guitar, melody, feedback and percussive throbbing. The songs themselves are fairly conventional in construction, but the way they are drenched in outlandish guitar noise is definitely unique, well beyond other much-lauded noise rock type bands like My Bloody Valentine. The singer's voice is hushed, almost a whisper, buried in the mix. Earlier FSA recordings featured a lot of acoustic songs, but this album is all about the electric guitar. New Lands, indeed. I'm surprised that FSA never got more critical attention. If you are an adventurous post rock listener or lover of psychedelia, you really need to hear this.