CHRISTENSEN & CHLAPEK
“Unknown Pressures” C40
(Dismal Niche)




Don’t sleep on the ambient stuff. Do not become narcotized by the ever-evolving haze. Christensen & Chlapek, of Zelienople and Neatly Knotted / Nevada Greene, respectively, build brick by brick, level by level an ziggurat of guitar and synthesizer, sound made physically dense by its heavy vibe. The two sides, one passage per each, take on actual mass, and from atop it you can glimpse the cosmos. Rhythm guides the players, chattering, vibrant through the first half of side A, changing to a shuffling backmask before blowing itself out by the end of the improvisation. Side B glows from the light of the Milky Way visible in the night sky, becoming an Evening Star itself in through the magic of synthesizer transfiguration. So down some peyote and hop into your van, drive deep into the desert, and truly become. Or ingest the merciless peppers of Quetzlzacatenango, grown deep in the jungle primeval by the inmates of a Guatemalan insane asylum, find your spirit animal, and be guided on a vision quest. Either way, your choice – but do choose to have Unknown Pressures playing on some kind of device throughout the night.

Dismal Niche

--Ryan Masteller