Tarot — Ace of Pentacles

Here’s a short, wee tape from Tarot - a new name to me. It arrives in very simple packaging: an unprinted tape, with a cleanly designed card insert - the front cover depicting the Ace of Pentacles tarot card. The cassette has a track on each side, both of which are harsh noise walls, around the ten minute mark.

Both Tarot pieces are very similar, though with marked differences. The first, ‘I’, is founded on a lumbering bass drone; this rumbles along at a relentless, if rhythmically erratic, pace - actually more akin to a Power Electronics ‘bass line’ at times. Over this, Tarot places snapping, stuttering, mid-frequency scuffs; these dance across the low end at a fairly static speed, though they perhaps increase in intensity towards the end. The second track, ‘II’, has a very similar palette; even though the beginning of the piece suggests it might be otherwise. At the start, it almost sounds like a distorted sample; as if voices were being obliterated and trying to break through. After this opening passage, though, a work following on from ‘I’ emerges. It has the same low end presence, but where the first track arguably had two distinct elements (bass and scuff), ‘II’ has three. On top of the bass rumble, there’s scratchy treble crackle and lower-mid frequency stutter - which move independently of each other. So it feels like a much more colourful, fleshed-out wall than ‘I’.

This is a good little release. It does suffer, perhaps, from being so short; but I’ll admit that it makes a pleasant change from huge monolithic albums. Both walls are very good, very contemplative; abrasive without being overbearing. ‘II’ has a slightly odd tone at points, somewhat digital or synth-like; but, to be honest, the only flaw I can give you, is that the pieces could happily go on way longer than they do. Good stuff.