Rothko/ Steve Parry — Howl
Howl is the first-ever proper sonic pairing between two of Britain’s key experimental moody setters. The album features two lengthy tracks, which nicely move through a fair bit of rewarding sonic territory- shifting well between the abstract and the atmospheric- making this one of the great instrumental albums of 2024.
The CD album is self-released by Mark Of Rothko, and is presented in a glossy black, grey, and red mini gatefold. This features some great atmospheric/ moody black & white photos, which are rather foreboding countryside bound. These both add to and enhance the album- this is how to do packaging in a simple yet effective manner- so it's well worth picking up. The CDs have pressing of just one hundred and fifty copies- I’d advise acting sooner rather than later!
A little bit about each project here- Rothko started life in 1997 based around bass player Mark Beazley- over the years the band went from being a three-piece with a keyboardist & a percussionist, but seemingly more recently has become the solo venture of Mark L Beazley. The project released its first album in 1999- going on to put out nearly 50 releases- taking in thirteen full-lengths, splits & EPs, etc. Steve Parry is behind the impossible-to-classify Hwyl Nofio- who has been active since the late 1990’s, creating a sonic brew of avant-garde, ambient, noise, musique concrete, contemporary classical and soundtrack elements- releasing seven albums so far….the pair have been friends for years, doing bits ‘n’ bobs on each other's output, but Howl is there first true collaborative venture.
Each of the tracks runs around the twenty to twenty-one-minute mark- with both being fairly eventful/varied in their unfolds. We open with “Howl- In The Season Of Darkness”- things begin with a blend of circling ‘n’ swirling churn organ churn, moody/ clean guitar scrapes ‘n’ scrubs, and light bound bass flourishes. By around the six-and-a-half-minute mark, we find atmospherically bound ‘n’ bow bass tones light seared by guitar feedback tone, with some subtle shifts into locked/ steadily chiming keyboard elements. As we move towards the track's end and around the eighteen-minute mark- we find a wavering/ emotional rising organ tone simmering/climbing, and lightly blues-tinged guitar tones.
Track number two is entitled “Howl-In The Season of Light”. It opens with a busy yet eerie selection of chime/ metal hitting tones- these are backed by purring guitar feedback and brooding strike- this leads into a selection of lightly creepy darting feet on old wooden sounds and organ simmer/ rise. By around the seventh minute, we find floating in & out guitar pick feedback, being underfed by steady & haunting wishful key climbs. By the sixteen minute- we find church organ jitteriness- this is shortly joined by moody guitar churns ‘n’ rolls, and climbing ‘n’ buzzing bass fumbles. The track nicely resolves with a rather unsettling blend of piercing tone chime, as something made of wood is being bashed/ smashed apart.
Both parties' sonic identities remain sound & clear throughout Howl, but they are mixed together in a highly compelling and distinctive manner. I do hope they do another collaboration down the line- as they work so well together to create work that is wholly rewarding and surprising, even after many plays. Drop in here to score a copy