Church
(Second Motion Records)
If the title seems somewhat ambiguous, suffice it to say it's also appropriate, albeit it in a bizarre sort of way. Over the course of a twenty-year career, the Church has procured a hazy cosmic sheen that tilts towards psychedelia with an unusually amorphous set-up that seems ever so intent on leaving the listener guessing. Hardly surprising, then, that one of their earliest albums was called The Blurred Crusade.
Hardly surprising either that this time around the band once again opts for their usual blend of sprawling melodies, ethereal arrangements and ruminating deliberations. The eerie, otherworldly mystique of "Pangea," "Deadman's Hand" and "On Angel Street" sound as if they were beamed down from a distant galaxy, but fortunately, the pulsating tempos and darker designs manage to maintain enough tension that keep the songs somewhat compelling. Still, it's the rare offering that find the foursome breaking out of the atmospherics and attempting something more than a mere drift through another droning mélange. By far the best of these attempts arrives in the form of "Space Savior," a song that starts sounding somewhat understated but promptly builds towards an insistent crescendo.
Those willing to commit to repeated listens will likely derive a greater degree of satisfaction, as ultimately it takes more than a cursory hearing for the Church to attract a new believer.
Standout tracks: Space Savior," "On Angel Street" LEE ZIMMERMAN
