Progressive / Experimental / Psychedelic

Christus and the Cosmonaughts define their music as Progressive / Experimental / Psychedelic, and there couldn’t be a better definition. I had no knowledge of their existence. They are a formation that originated in Kansas, with extremely talented and multifaceted musicians. The style they pursue is not close to my likings but this does not mean ‘From Atop This Hill’ isn’t an interesting record. It is the second coming of Scot Solida’s band, which has been silent for some years. Mainly it is him as the main axis, and he is accompanied by various musicians and collaborators. They open with ‘The Painfree god’, defining mostly the sound the record is going to have. A strong liquid, moving sensation. Mechanical, looping bases. Sonic, gliding notes that seem to fly and plough though the composition. The voice line is dark and matter-of-factly. It lays down the storyboard for the song and then leaves the instrumentation to take over. The music grows and evolves while the instruments, in a jazzy manner, flow in and out of the song: guitars, basses, synths… They all have their small moment of spotlight, making a creamy, complex construction of colourful sounds.

‘Nothing to say’ starts out with the voice line. Doubled in echo, it is tucked in by the lamenting, warping guitar and followed by delicate chimes. The song is blunt, direct and filled with a veiled sense of desperation. It is perhaps the most straightforward song of the record. The emotions are laid down in the open, while most of the other constructions move further into an imaginary, psychedelic world. They represent different feelings in an indirect way. The best example would be, ‘From Atop this hill’, song that gives title to the record, that opens slowly. Filled with frequencies, fluctuations and modifications, it is brimming of space and sonic qualities. It slows down and then takes off. Vibrant base lines that are constructed by layered sounds, pulsing and rushing, over which diverse instruments ride like a galloping horse. It pauses then again, lowering the sound tones into an almost mute place to the end of the construction.

‘Surviving the fanatics’ is probably by favourite song of the record. It definitely is the closest to a vintage techno pop structure. The percussion line is mechanical, looping and simple, recalling new wave. The voice sings/recites over the base, creating a melody line while the instruments do their thing, oscillating around the percussion line in a candid manner. The structure is predictable: strophe, chorus, strophe, stop. It is extremely short (not even three minutes) and very compact, managing to be an amazing counterpoint for the rest of the record, and giving a different perspective to ‘From atop this hill’ as a whole.

The next to songs work as a total. ‘The fractured faithfull’ is simply an orgy of sounds, pulses and notes that return the listener to the psychedelic, progressive world they had originated in, but then makes them go further into the intimate side that contrasts under every sound in Christus and the Cosmonaughts’ music. A primitive sounding guitar line and a singing voice that uses repetition as a chorus. The percussion can be even considered ritual, with a tribal, rough sound. But that, naturally, was only the beginning. Suddenly the song is torn away from the track and it is taken over by blipping, crackling empty space. And when you have been lost into abstraction, the song resurfaces. The voice returns the same but different. The guitar is much more prominent and much more psychedelic. There is a second, haunting, voice. The entire feeling is one of undulation. And the song is lost again into a vast void, where frequencies, noises and strings of melodies move in and out. Until a pulsating combination of instruments take over, with broken beats, a powerful guitar and many numerous layers of sound. It is fissured by a melodious sound that is able to bend the entire beat into its march. Of course, to close, there is a shadowed reprise of the original song structure. Had you forgotten it already? They were singing the same tune all along… ‘Nod if You Were the Last Man Alive’ is definitely a visual and imaginative experience.

Purely and freestyled experiment is the definition of ‘Modulating…’ that has the perfect name for its ever changing, moving composition; underlined by an inner beat. With ‘No Chance To Dream’, Christus return to something like a structure: with the smoky voice surrounded by the guitar that is then shredded and dissipated under a strong percussion line where the bass proves its worth. In a different way than in ‘Painfree God’, for the sound is more aggressive, all instruments enter and exit the song unto its extinction. ‘From Atop This Hill’ proves to be a wrapping experience, covering a wide spectrum of different coloured notes and lines. It sometimes feels as if the entire record were meant to be drawn out while listening to it, in an automatic and visceral way. An interesting, bizarre and delicious experience.