W. Cullen Hart & Andrew Rieger – “Through Poisoned Air”

Another archival treasure from the vaults of Elephant 6 approaches this week. Following the first new music from Olivia Tremor Control, out just a few months ago, Orange Twin has announced that a 10” of collaborative material is on its way from the band’s Will Cullen Hart and Andrew Rieger of Elf Power. A new track from the EP slips out today, a short, but sterling example of the pair’s approach to pop. The music, composed by Cullen digs into the clatter and collage of the collective’s most claustrophobic moments. “Through Poisoned Air” is psych-pop saturated in fuzz, flung against the walls, ripped and reversed until it shines; a jagged stone tumbled to jeweled perfection. Rieger’s ability to wrap the track in a calm cadence is no small part of that polish, and the pair make excellent foils over the course of these four tracks.

Rieger gives the process some context, “The way that we recorded these songs was that Will recorded all the music and then gave the songs to me to add vocals/lyrics. A few times during this song Will employs a great production technique in which the whole mix is basically destroyed by a bizarre noise that briefly erupts before the song goes back to it’s regular timing and feel. It is a wonderfully jarring effect, but it wasn’t the easiest to sing in time to, but I was able to make it work!” The EP was recorded in 1999 – 2000 when the two musicians were roommates, and is now seeing its’ proper release 25 years later! The new EP is out May 30th from Orange Twin.