Cul de Sac, Crashes to Light, Minutes to Its Fall (Thirsty Ear) 9+
Cul De Sac are one of a handful of American bands who have carved out an inimitable, pioneering body of work without following any trend or making a single compromise. They could be credited for creating their own genre if it could be described in a way that rolled off the tongue more elegantly than "pastoral psychedelic ethnic surf space rock." As a vocal-less group, their audience are mainly musicians and people with large record collections who disregard preening showmanship and simply want to sit back dig some astounding sounds. The release of this laid back masterpiece, however, could extend their instrumental magic beyond their cult audience. It seemed inevitable that Cul De Sac would reach an artistic peak with this release. In 1996 they had the cathartic experience of collaborating with guitarist/bandleader Glenn Jones' primary muse, acoustic experimental guitar legend John Fahey in the aptly titled The Epiphany of Glenn Jones. By all accounts, working with Fahey was a harrowing experience, but both parties emerged victorious with a beautiful album. Their confidence bolstered in overcoming obstacles and replacing bassist Chris Fujiwara with the more accomplished Michael Bloom, Cul De Sac recorded a group of songs that move slowly, but with the certainty of plate techtonics. "Etaoin Shrdlu" begins with an epic organ intro out of Who's Next and settles into the subtle mysteries of Middle Eastern trance music. "Father Silence" is a majestic march that could softly flatten mountains with its powerful raindrops of sound. The twelve-plus minute "Sands of Iwo Jima" outdoes anything by their teutonic space rock predecessors with glacial slabs of guitar noise, synthesizer buzzing, pulsing bass and jazzy drumming. By the time the rich, intricately classical guitar picking of "On the Roof of the World" fades away, you realize you have never heard anything quite like this before. Like the 19th century pastiche of a flower painting bathed in moonlight on the cover, Crashes To Light Minutes To Its Fall is a work of natural lustrous beauty.
