I found Her Stems Spiral quite unexpectedly while listening to a compilation dedicated mostly to punk, hardcore, and screamo, so it was a nice surprise to listen to something soothing and mathy amongst the abrasion. Her Stems Spiral is a one-man project from Johannesburg started by Shannon Lawlor, the bass-player of post-rock act Eyes Like Mirrors. His latest release, Lights Drip EP, came out it in March, but is well worth a mention here. Armed with only guitars and software, Lawlor has carved up a snappy little three track EP incorporating bouncing airy synths, IDM-like rhythm-sections and luscious, oh so luscious, riffs. I was taken aback by the amusing tag ‘mathgaze’ on bandcamp, which sounds quite sensible in this case. Lights Drip contains the typical oddball time changes and non standard track compositions we lose our shit over, but it is also spiced up with ambient and drone effects which gives the EP a nice surreal and dreamy coating. It’s a fine piece of work.
Perhaps I should also mention the artist’s advice: ‘Listen with headphones for the best possible experience!’
File Under
Electronic, disjointed riffs, experimental, one-piece, math rock, tappity-tap, drone, slow groove, ethereal, dreamy, progressive
Sounds A Tad Like
Three Trapped Tigers, Gallops, Sleep Party People
Price
Name Your Price (Bandcamp)
Location
South Africa