Mt.- Lethologica

by Simon T Diplock

It’s always captivating stuff. You hear that world? Now pay attention

"Yes, ‘Decline Into Shadows’ and ‘Worms And Coffee’ are loud enough to have you fearing for your speaker set-up but elsewhere and overall this is less like one massive thunderclap and more like the calm, the storm and everything in between."

When post-rock hopefuls ctrlaltdelete vanished into the sharp Carlisle air, the world noticeably failed to stop turning. But it did feel like their particular story wasn’t yet over. From the ashes of that band comes the similarly endowed Mt. (that’s Mount to you and me), who, with their ‘Lethologica’ debut, sound like they care less about scenester attention and more about making noise like a tornado.

The parallels between old and new band come in the shape of a nice line in album art, an equally beguiling sound and the fact that this new group feature former ctrl alumni Ben Maxwell and Laura Harrison. So, if you are familiar with the duo’s former output, you can expect the same head-crushing walls of noise and crunching feedback, but there have been some changes. Yes, ‘Decline Into Shadows’ and ‘Worms And Coffee’ are loud enough to have you fearing for your speaker set-up but elsewhere and overall this is less like one massive thunderclap and more like the calm, the storm and everything in between.

‘Add Obvious Errors’ starts proceedings, making its way to the calmest of centres before unwinding into stomping drums and distorted guitars. It is however, not nearly as close to the ubiquitous post-rock Mogwai comparisons as it is to the sound of Cap’n Jazz or Sigur Ros going on ambient jams without their vocalists. The twelve-minute ‘Sense Of Wonder…’ is so light that it sounds like it might take off, ‘Too Many Escape Darwin’s Attention’ sounds like Minus the Bear gone wild and, from including the only vocals of the album to its gritty, growling finale, ‘Between Now, And Then’ sounds like a lost Aereogramme classic.

Like all the best material of this genre the fifty minutes here take the listener on a real journey. Sometimes there’s barely a whisper, sometimes it’s a dreamy pop sound and sometimes it’s like all the darkness in the world just descended on your stereo, but it’s always captivating stuff. You hear that world? Now pay attention.

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