Horizontal Structures

Horizontal Structures is the group's second studio LP, following a debut, Vertical Ascent, and a live album recorded during an appearance at New York's Le Poisson Rouge. As with the trio's previous output, the compositions on Horizontal Structures are entirely improvised. The record's four long, languid tracks all stretch more than 10 minutes. But the group uses that freedom sparingly. The music has no solos and no dramatic shifts in tempo. A steady pulse-- typically a drum machine or sequenced pattern-- is introduced, then embellished upon using live instrumentation and effects. It's tonal, but never directly melodic. In fact, individual expression of any sort is extraordinarily disciplined-- limited to modest knob tweaks and percussion fills. Like Von Oswald's work with Basic Channel and Rhythm & Sound, the music makes heavy use of extended repetition. The tracks may be jammed out on the fly, but the results are tightly governed by the trio's shared affinity for minimalism.