Humcrush - "Rest at World's End"

When you press play after uploading Rest at World's End to your iPod, the first sounds you hear are a burst of snare and a snippet of teetering electronics that seem to be cut and sliced from a much larger piece of music. You get the sense of something that is being continued, something that is very fast, very busy, and uncatchable. It's like being tossed in the middle of a dark maze with the knowledge that there are cyborg-timberwolves pursuing you at every turn; it's razor-sharp free jazz nipping at your heels. This opening track--"Stream" to be exact--pushes you into this state of confusion so suddenly, that there is barely time to register the crisp (and safe) improvised free jazz that lies within it's mayhem. Only after a few listens can you find that underlying groove, but records such as these enjoying toying with those who engage.

World's End is Ståle Storløkken and Thomas Strønen's sophomore effort, and for me, the idea of robots and jazz has never been more clear. If that makes any sense. It's obviously an individual perception, but I really think that can be a clear metaphor for this music that is so wildly out-there and imaginative. To me, this album resonates around a number of different metallic and shiny-circuit themes, from the whispering frequencies of "Airport," to the magnetic gripes of "Hit." There's certain qualities there that mesh well with concept of artificial intelligence and all the other cool stuff that is shaping our world today. There's two human beings behind it, but no matter what the pace or mood, you always seem to find yourself in the machine. In this case, it's the free jazz that provides the framework for placing us there.