Insect Ark is the solo, Brooklyn based project of Dana Schechter. Everything you hear on her second release entitled Long Arms; the bass, keyboards, lap steel guitar, programming etc. is all her creation. It's a fantastic, brooding, often exhilarating mess of drone, ambient, experimental and instrumental textures. The formation of such deeply consuming atmospheres created by one person reminds me of the solemn focus of so many solo Black Metal artists.
The album was released on 10" vinyl about a year ago. Insect Ark is new to me, hopefully this review will find some more new listeners for this splendid release. The opening and title track 'Long Arms' starts with gentle shimmering ambient synth, slowly the distant sound of a somber smokey lap steel guitar drifts in. Schechter coaxes some striking sounds out of her lap steel guitar throughout the E.P.. The atmosphere of the song is gloomy gray and the tones of the guitar create palpable tension with its short mournful cries. The cries build into menacing rips of distorted guitar that are absorbed into the rising strain of the mix. A slow ponderous beat commences and bass notes slide in like echoes from an aching heart. The guitar tones become sharper and more agitated towards the end of the song. The percussion slows and the rips of guitar swing wildly like an angry Grizzly Bear. What makes good ambient to me is its ability to create evocative imagery in the mind of the listener. Long Arms pulls you in all sorts of murky musical spaces and is vividly awash with provocative musical textures. The seven minute opener is profoundly seductive and passes by like a lavish dream.
'Lift off' lifts off immediately with guitar bawls that sound like creepy alien babies calling out to the mother ship. The sharp pitched guitar trills continue but becomes secondary to the disoriented drums and intrusive streams of droning guitar. The guitar tones are often heavy and beckon to the darkness of Doom metal. An alluring track that balances melody, flourish and noise impeccably.
The final track 'Symbols' lumbers along with fuzzy drone and jerky drums. The now familiar laments from the lap steel guitar ride in the high tonal clouds. The song's pace is slow, intention, methodical. 'Symbols' unfolds like a dark ritual with eerie tones of dark voodoo incantations. The track is powerful, slinky, unsettling and ominous. Mid-way through 'Symbols' the guitar suddenly lurches into louder dramatic tones as if the aforementioned incantations awakened a dark musical beast. The track then evolves into short, seemingly random wails from the lap steel guitar. The tones appear to climb all over each other with dire conviction as the track fades out.
Insect Ark's music is thoroughly captivating as it weaves through a constantly shifting stratum of lush guitar textures and shadowy tonal cul-de-sacs. Schechter mixes a delicious musical cocktail with skillful amounts of drone and ambient guitar with dark looping atmospheres. The only gripe is Long Arms is quite the musical tease clocking in at a modest 16 minutes. Where do I sign up for a longer musical voyage aboard the Insect Ark? Very highly recommended, Long Arms in an inspiring work.
