CoC : Ur - Trieb : Review

Ur - _Trieb_
(Topheth Prophet, 2008)
by: Quentin Kalis (5.5 out of 10)

Topheth Prophet concentrates primarily on Israeli post-industrial mayhem, but are not averse to calmer soundscapes from further afield -- Italy, to be precise. Presumably named for the ancient city, _Trieb_ consists of four tracks of experimental improv rooted in industrial's embryonic stages of the late Seventies. They do tend towards (dark) ambient, as a drone acts as the foundation and mortar upon which we find bricks of electronica, field recordings and traditional instruments as heavily processed as a Happy Meal. Similarly, it is satisfying at first, but there is a lack of substance, as songs are dragged out well beyond the point they should have terminated. Ur are a prolific project (this was only released in spring 2008, but two further albums on differing labels have been released since then) and I'm tempted to say that perhaps more time should have been spent on perfecting the tracks, but then that would obviously interfere with their improv nature. I suspect this is one of those projects that are much better live, but this album is a rather mediocre affair.

Contact: http://www.aferecords.com/artists/ur.htm

(article published 24/2/2009)