THE WATTS Press / Reviews
CD album Decoherence reviews
23 Jan 2023, by Olav "Progmessor" Björnsen (Progressor.net)
Prolusion.
Multinational trio The Watts were formed back in
2017, and consists of the members Yuri Hama, Chris Cutler and
Tim Hodgkinson.
All of the members are of course well known for those with an
interest in the
more expressive sides of the progressive rock universe.
"Decoherence"
is their debut album, and was released through the label
Bonobo's Ark Records
in 2019.
Analysis.
Seeing the artists involved in this venture one
would expect the music here to reside inside of an extreme and
expressive
context somewhere, and that is very much the case here too. The
perhaps most
surprising aspect about the music captured on these live
recordings is that
there's a bit of an emphasis on minimalism that is an ongoing
feature: While
there are sound and noise explosions and chaotic moments with a
dramatic take
on a free form execution, this isn't a central aspect of the
landscapes
explored.
Instead we get more careful displays of searching
sounds and effects, some brief chaotic moments here, small
fragments of
coherence there, and longer passages with what I'd describe as
sequential
patterns as the main orientation. Later on, on the mammoth
length creation
'Kelvin' we also get several displays of what I'd describe as
minimalist
harmony and melody oriented passages wedged in between
sequences, occasional
dramatic eruptions as well as the aforementioned searching,
chaotic and subtly
more coherent oriented phrases. The concluding 'Rankine' then
appears to focus
on the elements introduced in 'Kelvin'.
Expressive minimalism may be a term one can use to
describe this album as a whole, and I also get the impression
that this album
is a journey where the shorter cuts focus on some aspects of the
different
orientations while the more substantial centerpiece creation
incorporates all the
elements to a lesser or greater extent.
The level of musicianship here is of course both
undeniable and very well documented, so how much or not people
will find this
album to be a rewarding experience all comes down to a matter of
subjective
taste.
Conclusion.
As far as music goes this is a most challenging
creation consisting of material very much existing on the outer
edges of a
defined musical universe with ties towards audio noise on one
hand and the more
chaotic instances of free form music on the other. This is niche
music for a
niche audience, a true gem of an album for those within that
particular sphere
but a hard to decipher and difficult to enjoy production for
those outside of
that niche. While this is music that is quite a bit outside of
my personal
taste in music, hence the rating, for those who think that
challenging
minimalist music with an experimental edge, an expressive
execution and a bit
of a free form undercurrent sounds like something that will be
an interesting
listen, chances are very high that they will find "Decoherence"
to be
a most enjoyable album experience.