It is my pleasure to write a bit on the latest release by Massachusetts-based Steve Davis a.k.a. +DOG+. I’ve written it loads of times, but until I started writing for Vital Weekly, I only had the En Nihil release from the label. Now I’ve learned a lot of new music through Steve’s activity as a label owner. Again, any CDR release is $7, including postage. LPs are $15, and it’s all about the music and noise, never about the money. Personally, I admire and support that attitude. Another thing is that we also need to discuss topics outside of music. If friendship is the result of being honest about things and writing creatively about someone’s art, then reviewing 15+DOG+ albums, as well as many other LEM releases from the last three years, has brought me friendship. We’ll keep on talking after this final Vital. This also applies to many artists I’ve met over the past few years (you know who you are).
But we’re here to review the latest +DOG+ album titled “Just Us”. It has 12 tracks ranging from 2 minutes exactly up to 6 minutes. And Steve does what Steve does best. He experiments with sounds and noise, and somehow manages to stay away from strict genre divisions while still creating a coherent release. With that, I mean that you often see, within a larger perspective, that an album is limited to one genre; it’s either all harsh noise, or all HNW, or all experimental, or all improv-based. But Steve, being Steve he opposes this limitation. Sure, something is way easier to sell if the content is coherent, but having multiple styles on one album is way more interesting. That’s why I personally love a good sampler, but with a singular artist, it becomes more difficult. Why? Because the listener still expects a certain coherency. And that is why I’ve grown to appreciate Steve’s work so much. And well, “Just Us” is no exception.
The album opens with a noisy track titled “In Youth We Howled At The Moon,” featuring a sample that states, “I know you will destroy everything.” It’s the first time I hear a sample being used like this on a +DOG+ album, I think. Throbbing layers are creating a kind of noise/power electronics symbiosis, and I love it. “Filling In The Blanks” is carried by a dissonant chord, and the following “And Now What?” has improv drumming over layers of droning synth sound. These first ones already cover three unrelated styles, which is what I meant. “Dearly In Our Hearts” and “How Does It Go Know?” also have that improv drumming (counting five tracks so far), and the other seven tracks are partially minimal exploration of particular sounds (for example, “It’s A Sad Road” and “Machines Thinking For Me”). In contrast, others are more based on exploring the composition (like “You’ve Always Been Special My Darling” or “Thousands Of Sunsets”). Steve, you have done it again!
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