Albums by this artist

Camofleur (1998)

Upgrade And Afterlife (1996)

Gastr Del Sol

Upgrade And Afterlife

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» PIERO SCARUFFI | STAFF WRITER

Gastr Del Sol Upgrade And Afterlife Drag City, 1996 RiYL: For Carnation, June Of 44, Slint, Squirrel Bait, John Fahey

Gastr Del Sol's David Grubbs and Jim O'Rourke carry most of the load themselves on Upgrade And Afterlife, in contrast to the more collaborative nature of their earlier albums. Although Tortoise's John McEntire and violinist Tony Conrad do make appearances here, Grubbs and O'Rourke are engaged in a continual joust with a bevy of sophisticated sounds. "The Sea Incertain" is the best example of this cut-and-paste style, blending slow-moving piano figures with the hiss of a low-register clarinet.

The monotonous guitar tolls of "Hello Spiral," which move lazily into a crescendo, are highly musical compared to the long pauses and lean sounds of "The Relay." To create confusion, Grubbs and O'Rourke throw in simple songs for voice and guitar along the lines of Nick Drake. During the gorgeous "Rebecca Sylvester" a lengthy guitar repetition makes a strong emotional impact.

John Fahey is also a reference point for such tracks, his inspiration to both Grubbs and O'Rourke made known on a cover of Fahey's "Dry Bones In The Valley (I Saw The Light Come Shining 'Round And 'Round)." These songs couldn't be more out of place in the overall scenery of Upgrade And Afterlife, but the instrumentation works in perfect harmony with the alienated tone of the parts. The noise becomes luxury furniture, to be arranged with taste in the sonic space which is available.

First with Squirrel Bait and later with Gastr Del Sol, Grubbs has been experimenting with rock's format well beyond the dogmas of punk, noise, post or any other prefix. Unfortunately, his cunning intelligence frequently collides with his emotions and overwhelms his inspiration, leading into unchartered territory. When said emotions follow him there, we hear some of the most engaging music of our time, and hints of the music of future millennia.

PIERO SCARUFFI | Piero Scaruffi runs the exhaustive music database Scaruffi.com. A native of Italy, he has also been praised for his work on the General Theory of Relativity, formal theories of the mind, and artificial intelligence. And no, we aren't making that up.