Loess - Totems [Clear Vinyl]

Totems is the fourth full-length album from New Jersey Pine Barrens experimental electronic duo Loess. The album encompasses some of Loess' most expressive and melodic yet otherworldly works to date. The opening cut blaen pulsates in odd forms yet is propelled by a micro garage beat that sounds as if alien AI might have constructed it. On the flip side, Totems is not about experimentation for experimentation's sake. For instance, the album's midpoint track, bentalls, might be Loess' most melodious work to date, warmly catchy but firmly set in the world of Loess. The duo has been quietly creating their style of electronic music for two decades in placing ambient, dub, garage, and IDM into their aural blender. Totems is an excellent example of Loess' adeptness at genre contorting.