We start off the new year with a full presentation of Kayo Dot's sophomore release, Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue, as the January Release of the Month. Since the break-up of maudlin of the Well and the formation of Kayo Dot, front man Toby Driver has been pushing the musical world from all angles, embracing a wildly experimental stance on the rock genre that infuses it with a classical compositional style yet has the feel and taste of a an artistic metal outfit. The release of Driver's 2005 debut solo effort, In the L...L...Library Loft was a visionary work of art reminiscent of the musical ingenuity of the legendary Mike Patton, yet all too bizarre for even the most affluent of indie elitists. While Driver certainly has been adding to an already glimmering resume, can he lead
his unconventional octet to another glorious album? Obviously the answer is yes, or else we wouldn't be deeming Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue as the January Release of the Month (and probably one of the year's best albums).
It's safe to say that the vision of Kayo Dot is lost on many ears. Call it what you will--avant-garde metal, orchestral metal, experimental psych rock--Kayo Dot is not an easy act to digest. For some reason, they've found it inexplicably difficult to escape the "metal" tag while simultaneously sounding like no other metal band out on the market. I'm not sure how many metal acts out there feature eight members and take a detour into the horns section, string family, and at times still manage to attack with four guitars, but I've not come across many of them. In fact, you might more readily compare them to a post-rock act the likes of Sigur Ros if you tend to base comparisons on tools alone. The band's sound and vision in another thing, but even here they are unparalleled among their contemporaries. Again, I don't see many bands adopting an orchestral approach to their craft these days, especially among the metal crowd. Kayo Dot is a unique force in today's music world; not necessarily an oddity, but many like to describe them as such because the band is so original that it comes across as bizarre. Some bands play rock music, some levitate towards more classical compositions, but Kayo Dot does both. That alone would be noteworthy, but as seen in Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue, the band has nearly perfected its craft to the point of sheer brilliance and remarkable artistic performance.
It would be easy to throw out a generic description of Kayo Dot's music: an experimentation in classical compositions which slowly evolves into rock-oriented structures and erupts with chaotic force. Yet, I take fault with this. There really is very little that is chaotic about Kayo Dot. To be chaotic the music must move in unpredictable and spontaneous ways, and although Kayo Dot may appear to subscribe to such a doctrine at first, repeated listens prove just the opposite--everything is intricately planned and executed with a precision unknown to most musicians. This process itself is truly an art form, and to appreciate this aspect of the music, the live show is direly necessary. While Choirs of the Eye's explicit goal was to be a "studio" album, Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue takes the path less traveled and attempts to capture the "live" feel. Those familiar with Kayo Dot's live set might be bewildered by this, as in the right venue it may be difficult to tell a difference between the studio and live version of the song--the band is that exact in its representation of the music through the live channel, but on a whole Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue attempts to capture the raw energy and passion of the live show that escapes the distanced production in the studio. Kayo Dot wants you to feel every note as it permeates through your body and it wants you to taste the blood and the sweat and the tears that make the music alive.
Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue is a five part epic journey where each part takes on a personality all of its own and is capable of enveloping the listener in a shroud of fear, or gently comforting it with harmonious rhythms. "Gemini Becoming the Tripod" is perhaps the track most similar to Choirs of the Eye, a fitting transition into Kayo Dot's new album. The track enters the picture with heavy, metallic riffs and throws forth a wall of sound that accumulates in intensity through guitar driven compositions and layered ambience. The turbulent landscape is thrown into a massive upheaval as Driver's demonic vocals irritate the musical space just enough to cause a harsh inflammation that resides over the eerie sounds of Kayo Dot. "Gemini Becoming the Tripod" is a hauntingly fierce song, the strongest of the album, and the closest the band gets to delivering another deeply cathartic release akin to
"The Manifest Curiosity."
Kayo Dot recedes into a more experimental mindset in "Immortelle And Paper Caravelle." Much of the action is centered around the interaction of the violin and bass, and Mia once again truly shines in the spotlight, crafting a backbone to the song that is dark, yet at times angelic. After a cascade of strings washes over the sonic landscape, Mia drives the song home with a fury of plucks that begs for a torrential downpour.
The most ambitious song on the album is "Aura on Asylum Walls," which is unrelenting in it's audible feasting. The bulk of the song is a jazzy improvisation with Forbes in the forefront blaring away on horns. Smooth, crisp notes are accompanied by a persistent drumbeat, anchoring the rhythm for the soulful musician. This quickly segues into a energetic battle between Mia's skillful violin and a full guitar attack. Although the guitars flare with an aggressive edge, they are mindful to avoid a full out metallic assault and instead limit themselves to controlled outbursts and withdrawn, detached fury. As the name suggests, the song adopts a uncharacteristically obscure nature; it changes forms readily and presents a remarkable testament to the talent of this band. "Aura on Asylum Walls" is Kayo Dot at its best--from beginning to end it is a constant challenge to keep up with this song.
The last two songs, "____ On Limpid Form" and "Amaranth the Peddler" span over thirty minutes of music and prove to be the most abstract and cerebral pieces on the album. Kayo Dot returns in full form after the stellar "Aura on Asylum Walls" to completely tackle the experimental/avant-garde world with metallic leanings thrown in for cathartic moments. These metallic undertones are not self-fulfilling, but rather the deflative artistic expression of the classical construction of denouement--they just happen to manifest as metal in nature. This period of the album lavishes the palette with a symphony of sounds as the different instruments take turns at the lead and effectively creative an intricate cocoon in which Driver's vocals are able to penetrate deep into the subconscious. String and horn compositions embrace guitar driven repetitions that subtle build up the ambient wall of sound to monstrous proportions. Creeping ever so slowly through the last piece of the album, Kayo Dot tests the listeners patience before the cataclysmic finale. The drums keep pace with elegant vocals that steadily erupt into nightmarish screams and howls, as the ferocity of the art becomes apparent while spilling out onto the sonic landscape with undying passion. The band explores the murky depths of their art form and resurface unscathed. In fact, they make it all look almost trivial.
In the end, Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue devastates the listener with an epic wall of sound, one of the band's favorite tricks. The most common complaint that I foresee about the album is that "no track challenges the artistic endeavor that we saw in 'The Manifold Curiosity.'" Personally, I would argue that the work seen in the likes of "Aura on Asylum Walls" is a new form of Kayo Dot that is at least as exciting, if not more so. But, the critics are right, there is no "Manifold Curiosity" on Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue, but any returning fan of the band shouldn't expect Kayo Dot to repeat themselves. The band is always on the move with bigger and better material--always striving to find a place a little bit closer to perfection. And in that since they have done an outstanding job with Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue, which is a more consistent release from the band that does an excellent job of capturing the essence of the band's live show as well and instilling it with a profound human component that was somewhat lacking in Choirs of the Eye.
With it's sophomore release safety completed, Kayo Dot sets itself up to be a main instigator of a new movement. Already bands far and wide are singing its praises, and while it may not have the biggest fan base among independent bands, Kayo Dot may be making a larger impact among its contemporaries, which ultimately gives them a lasting effect that no amount of money or fans can duplicate. Kayo Dot is much too intangible for the average listener, whom have neither the patience nor the background to fully appreciate the music that this band of artists create. But for the few who do see a bit of the vision that this band lays before it, a small comprehension begins to develop, and the resulting musical experience is truly breathtaking.
