COYOTE

The first half of the 2009 Maudlin of The Well album had made such an impression on me that I felt encouraged enough to also try out the new Kayo Dot. And again we are buried under expressions of alienation, misery and pitch-black nihilism. But regardless how impressive the music can be at times, the self-important weltschmerz portrayed here can be hard to swallow. Once you are passed that this album reveals some sheer brilliance.

The main problem sits with the vocals which can't be better described then the sound you would get if you'd play the dying wail of Jeff Buckley at an 'off' pitch. I'm not easily put off by vocals (unless they're obviously incompetent), but this type of free expression takes some time to get used to before you can enjoy the great avant-garde jazz prog that is played here. And there are occasions aplenty to enjoy the music. Whisper Ineffable is largely instrumental and simply gorgeous. The Abyss Hinge is mostly instrumental and is really adventurous, wandering off into bleak scary swamps that are usually inhabited with the Universe Zeros of this planet, the closing Cartogram is calm and jazzy.

I had to go back a couple of albums in this artist's discography to be able to crack the code, but it looks like I'm totally sold now.