A showcase for the ages
Most albums are testaments to the skill of an artist in one way or another. Whether it be their technical prowess with a single instrument, a number of instruments or their ability to force the listener into feeling the emotions they’re hoping for, each note ideally shows off at least one skill in an artist’s repertoire. Pure Imagination, No Country then is paramount when it comes to showing off. The Dave Harrington Group (a musical collective headed by one half of the duo Darkside) produces a showcase for the ages, where each musician is allowed to play to the peak of their abilities.
Immediately you’ll notice the drums on this album, light percussive bursts that would be right at home on an album by Japanese math rock group toe. But instead of sitting on a background of lightly plucked guitars, the drums form a jazzy bed for bluesy guitars and noodling synths, creating an experience so shockingly technical that you may just slip off into nirvana while it happens. In fact, the album often gets weird with its synth choices, particularly on “Belgrade Fever,” where Animal Collective-esque organic sounds bubble to life in the background.
“Slides Redux” also embraces the weirdness towards the front end of the track with a noisy whine of synthesizer that culminates in a startling bassy crunch before moving into one of the lighter jazzier moments of the track. It’s easy to imagine walking down dark alleys and rain-soaked streets to this album; each track glistens with slick neon and calls to mind smoky lounges in the world of Bladerunner. All this is to say that the album is futuristic, much like Harrington’s work in Darkside, but it remains grounded in the past, showcasing a path for these anachronistic sounds in the world of today.
Of course, few albums are flawless, and unfortunately Pure Imagination, No Country cannot count itself among them. There is, sadly, the needlessly long track that hampers the trajectory of any experimental album. On Pure Imagination, No Country it follows the excellent atmospheric stroll that is “Neoarctic Organs.” “Patch One” is not offensive, but once you’ve gone through about six and a half minutes of the track you more or less get what is happening, and most will find themselves drifting away from the track long before the closing remarks at 11:12.
Still with this humble flaw in mind, this record is truly excellent. It is calming to know that we still live in a world where music like this is being made, even if it is a rare occurrence. Pure Imagination, No Country is one of the most ambitious undertakings of the year, a blending of the old and the new, carried out by the hand of an auteur with the soul of an adventurer. Even if it had failed, it was a triumph the idea came into Harrington’s head. Luckily for us, it was a triumph when it hit the reel as well.
Leave a Comment