To claim that a piece of music is “pure poetry” is nothing particularly spectacular. Matt Finney and Randy Yerkes have, however, taken the idea quite literally. On their first three albums, Finney’s eruptive stream-of-consciousness-lyrics delivered in an introvert, raspy, somewhere-between-waking-and-sleeping-tone-of-voice are submerged with congenial compositions by his sonic collaborator. Equally adept at darkly glistening Ambient, euphorically ringing Post-Rock, ethereal Neo-Classical, experimental Soundscapes and even unconventional Dance, Yerkes is not just proving a jack-of-all-trades, but an ideal sparring partner for finding surprising, unconventional textures for the labyrinthine vocals to tread. The result is neither “acoustically backed-up spoken word” nor “Ambient with vocals”, but a veritable new genre of its own, in which both elements can take the lead or come to a plethora of intriguing constellations and which reunites the poles of ugliness and beauty, bluntness and delicacy as well as the unspeakable and the voluble with each other. As Finneyerkes know quite well, “poetry” isn’t merely intended for sensitive souls, after all. It can be a weapon, too.
Tokafi
MP3: Erna
Download Boston Not LA / Download Gone In 60 Seconds
Finneyerkes is an Alabama / Virginia based duo of Matt Finney and Randy Yerkes who, in their own words, create “ambient poetry” – a combination of spoken word and ambient music.
Matt Finney on “Erna”
It’s the story of a relationship i was in that was disintegrating slowly. The name comes from a Kirchner painting.
Note – You can download/stream the band’s full-length “Bastard” via archive.org
Read IHRTN review of the band’s albums
Further Info: Last.fm | MySpace | Twitter
Reviews / Interviews / Misc: Leonard’s Lair | Tokafi
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