Through February and March this year iLiKETRAiNS have been posting out two CD-Rs to anyone who asks. I've no idea how long this will last. But as you read this it could already be too late.
Hyperbright Leeds carriers of the volcanic orchestral traditions of Iceland, iLiKETRAiNS have four gorgeously recorded songs here with depth of character, tantalisingly visceral words and consummate dynamic control.
For a couple if years now the band have been growing an instinctively tuned five piece crescendo machine that goes way beyond emulation or imitation. The sonic link with SIGUR ROS is not in dispute. Nor is the fierce ambition to be a unique sound and presence in their own right.
"You're not human", opener on the second CD-R is above all a wonderful tune, sung impeccably with David Martin's full rich voice. Each syllable is savoured and enunciated with the kind of attentive delivery that only real singers employ. An exquisite opening rumble of distant thunder and mystery leads into a patiently descending tune that blends into a building storm of percussion and unleashed band. The voice stays calm and strong and the orchestrally structured music never repeats itself. "The Curtains Close" starts with Simon Fogal's Aaron Copeland-scale timpani sounds and Ashley Dean's ghostly cornet. The vocal is minimalist and haunting.
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The general pattern is there too in "The Accident" and "Stainless Steel" on the first of the two CD-Rs. Each song has it’s own mood and theme, but musically the work is directed at emotional and spiritual lift-off through a fiercely slow release of murderous and cathartic energy. A drawn out line starts in the deceptively mundane world "please don’t go into the kitchen" with vowels and trailing consonants stretched to breaking, before the more urgent release of "that's where the knives are". Simple stuff. But they have the patience and poise to carry it off in the truly epic 8 minutes 49 of "Stainless Steel".
Alistair Bowis (guitar and bowed guitar) and Guy Bannister (bass) complete the determined crew. This could be an interesting journey. Access to all plaforms: http://www.iliketrains.co.uk
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