The Advisory Circle

Well the rest of the world seems doused in Year End lists already but seeing as we're not quite at the end of the year, there's more to assess before RSTB gets to our list. And how can we lock down 2014 without taking another visit 'round to the Ghost Box stable. With the already stellar release from Soundcarriers under their belt this year, the venerable UK label comes in late with The Advisory Circle's newest offering, a darker drip from Jon Brooks' filter than ever before. The album still hinges on Brooks' ability to craft seamless sound design that evokes Radiophonic flashbacks and library soundtracks welded into children's story book backdrops, but this time Brooks seems to be exploring more of the deep dark woods of the original Grimm set of tales than any Disney-fied singing animals and luxe colored castles. From Out Here flips through dusty cylinders, spliced reel to reel and Brooks' own deeply melancholic synth and guitar touches that skitter through misplaced misgivings like film spools that constantly dissolve into cigarette burns and away half-remembered premonitions of futures that you hope won't come true. In 2014 Brooks has found a way to melt copies of Alice in Wonderland and Brazil together into a Cheshire grinned wink at horrors to come. Its albums like this that make waiting for all the entries worthwhile before casting 'best of' ballots.

Listen:


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