Don't Climb On and Take the Holy Water Album

In their hometown of Seattle, Chris Martin, Lucy Atkinson,
and Matthew Reid-Schwartz of the lysergic-punk band Kinski
often play out incognito. Under the guise Herzog (film buffs
should figure all these German names out pretty quickly), the goal is
to experiment with mood, sound construction and interplay by channeling
their chemistry into an exploration of their "cosmic" side. These entirely
improvised sets have yielded some truly heady excursions into the sonic
ether. Although they may perform as Herzog, the sum of the parts
is still Kinski, and while the intent is to shower the air with
slow-raining space dust rather than their trademark heavy-paisley riffs,
ambient drone is still very much an aspect of the overall Kinski
sound. Don't Climb on and Take the Holy Water is a snapshot
of these experiments, "free-ambient" sounds weaved on the spot when the
guitarists subliminally dialed into one another and directed their energies
into a subtle exploration of drone, texture and atmosphere.
Don't look for crushing volume or any psychedelic/punk dynamics here.
Culled from various sessions in the studio, at the practice space and
live on stage, Don't Climb on and Take the Holy Water documents
the intimate "Herzog" experience, placing the spotlight entirely on the
soundscape element that otherwise provides décor for the Kinski approach
to rock. Using bass, guitar, synthesizers, bells and effects-saturated
flute, the players improvise a heady sonic drama which supplants the typical
rock instrumentation into realms of cosmic/ambient, electronic, minimalism
and film-score imagery. "The Misprint in the Gutenberg Print Shop" is
the album highlight, a complete 30 minute live set recorded at the I-Spy
in Seattle which displays the fluid organic development of the band's
spontaneous sound weaving; "Never Compete with Small Girls" is a minimalist
drone meditation borne from the Airs Above Your Station
studio sessions. Kinski attenuate their improvisations to focus
on color and the subtle aspects of group interplay, and the resulting
explorations flow like mellow magma. Don't Climb On and Take the
Holy Water is an ethereal concoction, ample with rewards for those
with an attentive ear.
Brimming with drones, tones and mellow glissandos, Kinski offer
a window into their experimental side that only those in the Seattle area
have been lucky enough to experience. Similar in approach to the ambient
bliss-outs found on the recent collaboration album with Acid
Mothers Temple (Sub Pop, 2003) and Chris Martin's Ampbuzz
solo project (This is My Ampbuzz,
Strange Attractors, 2002), Don't Climb on and Take the Holy Water
is an opportunity to hear Kinski set free, exploring inner space.
-Strange Attractors