Laurence Pike - Distant Early Warning

  by Maarten Schiethart

published: 31 / 5 / 2018

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After numerous collaborations Laurence Pike, who was educated at the Sydney Conservatorium, has refrained from everything on his debut solo album apart from his own drums and selected samples for them, thus avoiding the possibility and danger of creating the obvious. It was recorded at Oceanic Studios in Sydney and, despite its ominous album and track titles, I find this to rather sparkling and transparent freeform music. I am pleasently puzzled. It is Springtime over here in Europe and Autumn down under, and I hear no gloom and doom, but the album instead takes us on a grand journey which brought back for me happy memories of Glenn Kotche's solo works. Tranquil excitement is the common theme on its six tracks, with, for example, a gamelan-like aspect to 'Corporate Memory', almost as an imaginary shadowplay or exquisite music written for a ballet. Delicate in many ways, 'Distant Early Warning' comprises soft brushes, tickling imagination and mildly rolling compositions. It is like strolling through a desert from one oasis onto the next. YOou entirely lose your sense of time listening to this album. It is like going an adventure listening to the jazzy key notes he has created with his drum pad sampler and subtle percussion play. There are warm sounds of progress on 'Hard Feelings', and this is - again - where I beg to differ as it it sounds so considerate and friendly, 'Cyber Bully' does no harm at all. It can easily be enjoyed digesting breakfast as well as accompanying a good drink in the evening. Very much my cup of tea this.

Track Listing:-

1 Life Hacks
2 Distant Early Warning
3 Cloud And Wires
4 Hard Feelings
5 Cyber Bully
6 Corporate Memory

Band Links:-

https://www.laurencepike.net/
https://www.facebook.com/laurencepikedrummerandfriend/
https://www.instagram.com/laurenzpike/

Label Links:-

http://www.theleaflabel.com/en/index.php
https://www.facebook.com/theleaflabel
https://twitter.com/theleaflabel
https://www.youtube.com/user/theleaflabel
https://plus.google.com/109098497483046618790

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