ALBUM OF THE WEEK: Soft Walls – No Time
Dan Reeves is back with his latest record No Time, a psychedelic musing on time and what we should do with it.
Album Reviews | Released
Soft Walls – No Time
(Trouble In Mind)
4 out of 5
You know you’re going to be in for a treat when you see that an album is being released through the excellent Trouble In Mind label and Soft Walls do not disappoint with this, their second album. Building on the progressive psych folk of their debut, they have now become a fully oiled machine and can cast some serious psych shadows over the scene.
It’s one of those albums that drifts by in a haze, gripping you at certain points so as to keep you on your toes as you succumb to the pleasure of listening. Much more Krautrock than his eponymous debut, there is a drone like quality that follows throughout No Time giving a sort of grounding point for your journey.
And what a journey it can be. It all starts quite normally (as far as Soft Walls do normal) in Won’t You Remember My Name which is possibly the most accessible track here, but also the one that will enable you to slip into their mindset. All reverbed up and ready to go, there is a hint of baggy about it a la Crocodiles before thrusting you straight into the unknown with the thunderous bass of Never Come Back Again. This is where the Dan Reeves fronted project really comes into their own.
Full of ambient noise, several tracks serve as links to drive the songs forward. Take Slumbering, which is a crescendo of soothing noise before the mean and dirty Foot of the Stairs offers a change of perspective on what has gone before. There is a keen engagement with the music to make it of dreamlike quality, but to also experiment in different styles making this album such a pleasure to listen to.
The only jarring moment comes with Guided Through, sounding like a demo thrown in which doesn’t really flow with the rest of the album. There are some nice moments at work though as the clanging chime slowly unravels into another drone like ending and the shimmering guitars cause a dazzling ending.
This is alleviated by the beautiful Transient View, short and sweet it tricks you into a sense of joy before ending on a long drawn out note which takes an age to finish. Endearingly good it sort of sums up the album.
In an age where psychedelic exploration of music is taking things to longer and longer lengths, it’s a delight to see Soft Walls cutting out the nonsense and delivering what is a fine album and deserving of a wider audience. At it’s peaks it is a joy to listen to and the Krautrock feel throughout gives it a sense of oneness which you don’t get with many albums. More of a piece than a series of songs, this is one album to lift up your spirits.
Martyn Coppack
