Every two days I sit down and listen through the ton of music submissions you guys have sent into the blog. While it rarely becomes a chore, when you've sat though half an hour of pretty average stuff, you're extremely grateful for something as truly brilliant as this. The Australian Ned Beckley and Patrick Dunn record under the pseudonym Lower Spectrum, and dropped this eponymous EP earlier this year. Available for free over in the Bandcamp, trust me when I say that this is a deal worth grabbing. Cinematic, epic and instrumental are the labels 'Lower Spectrum' has been tagged with. As you listen, it's an understatement to say that the music has delivered on such a confident appraisal. The thundering scope of 'Introduction' (which you can stream below) builds and builds, stark oriental chimes detailing the low, throbbing hum. The sound grows into something huge, flickering and grinding. Electronic glitches and whirring cogs contrast with the sudden sonic drop. Your stomach lurches as the wind blows through the microphone. The vast machine has gone, and 'Closed' comes to take its place. A softer number, the melody floats through lush synths and a steady, unfaltering beat. The quiet, humble ending still has that overwhelming beauty, and that same expanse of sonic passion that takes you someplace else. The title track has some simply astounding mountain tones. A lone synth rolls over hills and through towering trees. There is a level of polish to this and all four tracks that I love. Every second feels like the duo's heart and soul has gone into making 'Lower Spectrum' sound perfect, and that pays off. I'll let you discover the last few minutes for yourselves in the final, spine-tingling 'In/Out', while I download myself a copy of the EP!
