Stellar instrumentals reach to the golden age of post-punk and beyond

Those who once found themselves entranced by the post-punk instrumentals of Pell Mell, the hypnotic elements of Television, the Neats, Feelies and Raybeats, the melodicism of Love Tractor, the spacerock of Can, and the electronics of Stereolab and Tuxedomoon, will be happy to meet the instrumental quintet, Tristeza. Riffing guitars, solid bass lines and full-kit drumming open the album with the powerful “Castellon.” The band crosses Latin and lounge flavors with the rock jamming of The Doors in “Floripa,” and mixes traditional guitar/bass/drums with electronics throughout. You can hear the textures, tones and rhythms of progrock, surf, spacerock, jazz, ambient, dub, and highlife threaded together, with repetitions that draw big, hypnotic pictures from small circles of melody. If you’d forgotten how powerful instrumental post-punk can be, Tristeza’s latest release will quickly absorb you in its grasp. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]

MP3 | Manitas
MP3 | Tension Futura
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